UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 


OIKT    OK 


Received 
Accessions  No 


Shelf  No. 


HOUSE  EXECUTIVE  DOCUMENT,  No.  51. 

FORTY-NINTH  CONGRESS,  FIKST  SESSION. 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FAMING, 


IN    TWO    PARTS. 


UNITED  STATES  CONSULAR  REPORTS. 


CATTLE 


AND 


DAIET  FAEMING. 


I. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING   OFFICE. 

1888. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
SECRETARY'S  LETTER 4..... 3-40 

AFRICA. 

Cape  Colony  (Consul  Siler,  CapeTown; '. 669,670 

Mauritius  (Consul  Prentis,  Port  Louis) 673 

Morocco  (Cousul  Mathews,  Tangicrs) 672 

Seychelles  (Consul  Mussey,  Mah6) , 673,674 

Sierra  Leone  (Consul  Lewis,  Sierra  Leone) 671 

Zanzibar  (Consul  Cheney) 672 

AMERICA. 

North  America: 

Dominion  of  Canada : 
Ontario : 

Canadian  cattle  companies  in  the  United  States  (Consul  Parker,  of  Sherbrooke) . .  537, 538 
Cattle  most  suitable  for  Canadian  farmers  (Commercial  Agent  Bobbins,  Ottawa) . .  538-540 

Cattle  and  dairy  farming  in  Ontario  (Consul  Pace,  Port  Sarnia) 540-54G 

Cattle  of  Ontario  (Consul  Howard,  Toronto) 547-556 

Cattle  in  Eastern  Ontario  (Consul  Hazleton,  Hamilton) 556-559 

Cattle  and  cattle  products  in  Southwestern  Ontario  (Commercial  Agent  Buffington)  559-564 

Cattle  in  Prescott  (Consul  Slaght) 564-560 

Cheese-dairying  in  Hastings  County  (Consul  Prince,  Belleville) 566-568 

Cattle  in  Caiiton  County  (Commercial  A  gent  Bobbins,  Ottawa) 568,  569 

.  Cattle  in  the  Simcoe  district  (Commercial  Agent  James,  Simeoe) 570 

Quebec : 

Cattle-raising  in  Quebec  (Consul  Parker,  Sherbrooke) 571-574 

Cattle  in  Gaspe  Basin  (Consul  Holt) 574 

Prince  Edward  Island : 

Cattle  in  (Consul  "Worden,  Charlottetown) 574,575 

Mexico : 

Cattle-breeding  in  Northern  Mexico  (Consul-General  Sutton,  Matamoros) 576-585 

Cattle-raiaing  in  the  State  of  Chihuahua  (Consul  Scott,  Chihuahua) 585-587 

Cattle  ia  the  State  of  Nuevo  Leon  (Consul  Campbell,  Monterey) 587-589 

Stock-raising  in  the  State  of  Nuevo  Leon  (Consul  Campbell,  Monterey) 589-592 

Cattle-raising  in  the  State  of  Tamaulipas  (Consul  Smith,  Nuevo  Leon) .-. 592-591 

The  breeding  cattle  of  Northern  Mexico  (Vice-Consul  Prigden,  Piedras  Negras)..         591 

Cattle-raising  in  Sonora  (Consul  "Willard,  Guaymas) 595 

Cattle  in  Lower  California  (Consul  Yiosca,  La  Paz) •    59.G 

Central  America : 

Cattle-raising  in  Honduras 597-602 

South  America :  , 

Argentine  Republic: 

Cattle  industry  of  (Consul  Baker,  Buenos  Ayres) - 603-621 

Brazil : 

Cattle  in  (Consul-General  Andrews,  Ilio  do  Janeiro) 630-632 

Colombia  (United  States  of) : 

Cattle  on  the  plains  of  Bogota  (Vice- Consul  Boshell,  Bogota) 633 

Ecuador : 

Cattle-breeding  and  products  of  cattle  in  (Consul  Beach,  Guayaquil) 634, 635 

Peru: 

Cattle  in  (Consul  Lapoint,  Chiclayo) G3C 

Uruguay: 

Cattle  and  cattle-breeding  in  (Charge  d'Affaires  Bacon,  Montevideo) 622-629 

Venezuela : 

Cattle  interest  in  (ConsulBird,  LaGuayra) 637,638 

Cattle  supply  of  Maracaibo  (Consul  Pluoaachor) 638 

ill 


West  Indies: 

Cattle  in  Bermuda  (Consul  Allen,  Bermuda) •         63f 

Cattle  in  San  Domingo  (Consul  Simpson,  Puerto  Plata) 639,640 

Cattle  and  cattle  products  in  Saint  Thomas  (Consul  Smith) 640,641 

ASIA. 
Ceylon : 

Cattle  of  (Consul  Morey,  Colombo) 655-65! 

American  vs.  Danish  and  French  butter  in  (Consul  Morey.  Colombo) CT . 

China: 

Cattle  in  the  Yang-tse-Ziang  Valley  (Consul  Shepard,  Hankow) 664-GG8 

Cattle  in  Southern  China  (Consul  Seymour,  Canton) 6C8 

Japan : 

Cattle  in  (ConsulJones,  Nagasaki) 6G3 

Java: 

Buffalo  cattle  of  (Consul  Hatfleld,  Batavia) 661,  GO? 

Malaysia  and  Siam : 

"Water  buffalo  of  (Consul  Studer,  Singapore) 660,  GG1 

Philippine  Islands : 

Cattle  in  (Commercial  Agent  Voigt,  Manila).;.... 673 

Syria : 

Cattle  in  /Consul  Robeson,  Beirut) 652-654 

AUSTRALASIA. 
New  Zealand : 

Cattle  of  (Consul  Griffin,  Auckland) 642-650 

Tasmania: 

Cattle  in  (Consul "Webster,  Hobart) .••*. 65° 

Victoria : 

Cattle  in  (Consul-General  Spencer,  Melbourne) « 6:51 

EUROPE. 

Cattle-breeding  in  Europe  and  in  the  United  States  (Consul  Tanner,  of  Venders  and  Liege) . . .  41-50 

Scientific  dairy  instruments  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 685,688 

Cream-separating  machines  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 688-691 

Feeding  on  the  soiling  system  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 701-703 

Belgium : 

Cattle  in  (Consul  Steuart,  Antwerp) 359,360 

Breeds  of  cattle  in  (Consul  "Wilson,  Brussels) &5J-365 

Cattle  and  cattle-breeding  in  (Consul  Tanner,  Verviers  and  Liege) 366-370 

Belgian  and  Dutch  milch  cows  (Consul  "Wilson,  Ghent) 370-383 

Belgian  process  for  preserving  meat  and  vegetables  fresh  (Dr.  Closset's) 699-701 

Farming  in  Belgium  (M.  FrangoisFlechet) 705-708 

Denmark : 

Danish  cattle  (Consul  Ryder,  Copenhagen) „ 490-492 

Angeln  cattle  (Consul  Ryder) 492-495 

Butter  export  of  Denmark  (Consul  Ryder) 495-498 

Union  dairies  in  Denmark  (Consul  Ryder) 498-501 

France : 

Cattle  breeds  of  France  and  their  products  (Consul  "Williams,  Rouen) 

Division  of  land  and  cattle-breeding  in  France  (Vice-Consul  Martin,  Marseilles) 266-272 

Cattle-raising  in  the  southwest  of  Franco  (Consul  Roosevelt,  Bordeaux) 272-281 

Normandy  cattle  (Consul  Glover,  Havre  > 282-285 

Cattle  products  in  the  district  of  the  Marne  (Consul  Frisbie,  Rheims) 

Cattle  in  the  district  of  Nice  (Vice-Consul  Vial,  Nice) ~ 

French  livejstock  (Official  Catalogue  of  Paris  Exhibition) 724-729 

French  cattle  (from  the  Field  newspaper) ^. 729-734 

French  sheep  (H.  Sains- Jackson) ...„ 777 

Germany: 

Breeda  of  cattle  in  Germany  (Consnl-General  Vogeler,  Frankfort-on-the-Main) 389-397 

Cattle  in  Germany  (Consul  Schoenle,  Barmen) 397-403 

Cattle  breeds  of  Germany  (Commercial  Agent  "Warner,  Dusseldorf)..— - 404-408 

Cattle  in  Prussia  (Consul-General  Brewer,  Berlin) 408-413 

Cattlein  Oldenburg,  Jeverland,  and  EastFriesland (Consul "Wilson,  of  Hremen) 413-425 

Cattle  in  Saxony  (Consul  Mason,  Dresden) ^ _ 426-431 

Silesian  cattle  (Consul  Dithmar,  Breslau) 431-438 


CONTENTS.  V 

Germany— Continued.  Page. 

Cattle  of  Thuringia  (Consul  Mosher,  Sonneberg) 438-442 

Yoigtland  cattle  (Consul  Bullock,  Annaberg) 442,443 

Cattle-breeding  in  Wurtemberg  (Consul  Catlin,  Stuttgart) 444-464 

Cattle  breeds  of  Baden  (Consul  Ballow,  Kehl) 464-472 

Cattle  products  in  Baden  (Consul  Smith,  Mannheim) 473-475 

Bavarian  cattle  (Consul  Harper,  Munich) 475-480 

Cattle  in  the  Duchy  of  Brunswick  (Consul  Fox,  Brunswick) 480-482 

Harz  cattle  for  the  United  States  (Consul  Fox,  Brunswick) 482,483 

Cattle  in  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Hesse-Darmstadt  (Commercial  Agent  Smith,  Mayence) .         483-487 

Cattle  in  the  Rhine  province  (Consul  Spackman,  Cologne) 487-489 

Live  stock  in  Bavaria,  census  of  (Consul  Harper,  Munich) 709 

Dairy  association  laws  of  Wurtemberg  (Consul  Catlin,  Stuttgart) 691-694 

Wurtemburg  cattle  laws  (Consul  Catlin,  Stuttgart) . 743-752 

Domestic  animals  of  Bavaria  (Consul  Harper,  Munich) 753,754 

Holland : 

Dutch  cattle  (Consul  Eckstein,  Amsterdam) 502-514 

Cattle  of  Holland  (Consul  Winter,  Rotterdam) 515-518 

Hungary: 

Meat  and  dairy  cattle  in  (Consul  Sterne,  Budapestli) 527-536 

Italy : 

Cattle  and  dairying  in  Lombardy  (Consul  Grain,  Milan) 324-329 

Buffalo  cattle  of  Terra  di  Lavoro  (Consul  Haughwout,  Naples) 326-329 

Cattle  in  Piedmont  (Vice-Consul  Dezeyk,  Turin) 329,330 

Cattle  in  Tuscany  (Consul  Welsh,  Florence) 330-334 

White  cattle  of  Tuscany  (Consul  Crosby,  Florence) 334,335 

Cattle  in  Venetia  (Consul  Noyes,  Venice) 335-358 

Cheese  and  butter  making  in  Italy  (Consul  Crain,  Milan) 677-682 

Malta: 

Cattle  in  (Consul  Worthington) 323 

Russia : 

Cattle-breeding  in  Russia  (Consul-General  Stanton,  Saint  Petersburg) 519-523 

Cattle  in  the  Baltic  provinces  (Consular  Agent  Bomboldt,  Riga) 524 

Cattle  of  Finland  (Acting  Consul  Donner,  Helsingfors) 525 

Polish  cattle  (Consul  Rawicz,  Warsaw) 525,526 

Spain : 

Cattle  in  Andalusia  (Consul  Oppenheim,  Cadiz) 384-387 

Cattle  in  Catalonia  (Consul  Scheuch,  Barcelona) 387 

Cattle  in  Galicia  (Consul  Car ricarte,  Corunna) 388 

Switzerland : 

Swiss  cattle  (Consul  Mason,  Basle) 287-297 

Statistics  of  brown  Schwitzer  cattle  (Consul  Byers,  Zurich) 298-303 

Swiss  cattle  and  dairy  products  (Consul  Beau  champ,  St.  Galle) 303-320 

Cattle  in  the  district  of  Geneva  (Consul  Adams,  Geneva) 321-323 

Manufacture  of  Swiss  cheese  (Consul  Adams,  Geneva) 682-685 

United  Kingdom : 

Cattle  breeds  of  the  -United  Kingdom  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) , .      57-78 

Cattle  breeds  of  the  United  Kingdom  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 78-156 

Select  breeds  of  British  cattle  (Consul  Packard,  Liverpool) 156-172 

Hereford  cattle  (Consul  Lathrop,  Bristol) 172-180 

Herefordshire  and  Hereford  cattle  (John  Kersley  Fowler,  Prebendal  Farm,  Aylesbury) . . .  811-188 

British  breeds  of  cattle  (Joseph  Lay  Faulkner,  veterinary  surgeon,  South  Milford) 188-205 

Jersey  cattle  (Consular  Agent  Renouf,  Jersey) 205-207 

Cattle  in  Cornwall  (Consul  Fox,  Plymouth) 207 

Cattle  in  Scotland  (Consul  Wells,  Dundee) 208-217 

Scotch  breeding  cattle  for  the  United  States  (Consul  Leonard,  Leith) 217-224 

Cattle  in  Ireland  (Consul  Piatt,  Cork) 224-228 

Butter  industry  of  Ireland  (Consul  Piatt,  Cork) 229-231 

Butter  trade  of  Cork  (T.  J.  Clanchy,  Cork)  231-235 

Butter  industry  of  Ireland  (evidence  of  William  J.  Lane,  of  Cork,  before  committee  of 

House  of  Commons) 235-239 

A  Wiltshire  diary  record  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 691 

Transport  of  cattle  (James  Long) 694 

British  cattle  markets  (Consul  Ryder,  Copenhagen) '-  696-699 

Mixed  food  for  cattle  (James  Long,  Hetchin,  England) 703,704 

Sandringham,  Prince  of  Wales's  herd  (Edmund  Beck,  agent) 710 


VI  CONTENTS. 

United  Kingdom— Continued.  Page. 

Cattle  in  the  Weald  of  Kent  ("W.Morland,  Kent) 711 

Cattle  and  sheep  in  Bucks  (John  Treadwell,  Backs) 711 

Prize  breeders  of  British  cattle  (Sir  B.  T.  Brandreth  Gibbs) 712-715 

Milk  yield  of  sixty  British  cows  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) 715,716 

Position  of  English  dairy  farming  in  1883  (Gilbert  Murray) 716-720 

Milking  trials  at  the  London  Dairy  Show  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) 720-722 

Central  Chamber  of  Agriculture 722 

Daily  increase  in  weight  of  various  British  breeds  of  cattle  (Consul-General  .Merritt, 

'    London) 723 

British  prize  cattle  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) 735-742 

Breeds  of  sheep  in  the  United  Kingdom  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) 755-760 

Breeds  of  pigs  in  the  United  Kingdom  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) 760-762 

Cotswold  sheep  (H.  T.  Elwes,  Cheltenham,  England) 762,763 

Long- wool  Lincolns  (John  "W.  Mackinder,  Mere  Hall,  Lincoln) 763 

Southdown  sheep— history,  breeding,  and  management  (Henry  "Wood,  Merton,  Thetford) . . .  763-772 

Southdown  sheep  and  Cambridgeshire  farming  (from  the  Field  newspaper) 773-777 

"Weights  of  sheep  at  Islington  (Mark  Lane  Express) 778-782 

Sheep  and  mutton  in  1883  (Live-stock  Journal) , 782-788 

Sheep  portraits  (Consul-General  Merritt,  London) , 788,  789 

Berkshire  pigs  (Joseph  Saunders  and  Alfred  Ashworth) 789 

Yorkshire  pigs  (Sanders  Spencer) 789,790 

Black  Suffolk  pigs  (J,  A,  Smith,  Ipswich),...,,, v 790 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 

BRITISH  CATTLE. 


Description. 


'age. ' 


I.  DSYONS. 


Cow,  Pretty  Faco... 

Bull 

Cow 

Cow,  Phlox , 

Bull,  Sweet  William 
Cow,  Temptress  8th. 


2.  HEBEFOSDS. 

Heifer,  Leonora ;  head  only ;  plate  350  ia  a  full  portrait  of  this  animal 


Ox 

Bull.  Fisherman.    Owned  by  tho  Earl  of  Coventry 

Bull!    Owned  by  Mr.  J.  H.  Yeoruans.  Stretton  Court,  Hereford.. 
Cow.    Owned  by  Mr.  J.  H.  Yeoiuaus,  Stretton  Co  art,.  Hereford . 

Bull,  Romeo 

Ox.    A  celebrated  prize  animal - , 

Cow,  Golden  Treasure 

Cow,  Giantess 

Bull,  Thoughtful 

Heifer,  Leonora ..., 


s. 


Ox.    Owned  by  Mr.  Bolt.    First  in  Iris  class  at  Islington  «««;*.<««...<. 

Heifer,  Lady  wildeyes  h'th.    Owned  by  Lord  FitzhardLnge 

Cow,  Lady  Wellesley  2nd.    Owned  by  Mr.  Hawstorue 

Cow,  cross-breed,  dairy 

Bull.    Owned  by  Mrs.  Hutchinson,  Catterick,  Yorkshire 

Cow.    Owned  by  Mrs   liutchinsoa,  Cattorick,  Yorkshire.     (This  cow  is  erroneously 

designated  "Devon"  in  portrait)  

Bull,  Foscoo,  -white.    Gained  first  prize  at  tho  Highland  Society  Show,  and  second  prize 
at  the  Royal  Agricultural  Show,  England.    Owned  by  Lord  btratuallan,  Auchtorarder, 

Perth  shire,  Scot  land 1 

Cow,  liosa  Bouheur,  \vinnerof  first  prizes  at  agricultural  shows  in  Scotland  and  Eng- 
land.   Owned  by  Lord  Stralhallan.  Perthshire,  Scotland 

Bull.    A  prize  animal,  owned  in  Scotland 

Bull.    Duke  of  Underloy 

Cow,  Lady  Violet 

Heifer,  Lady  Violet 

Bull,  A nchor 

Bull,  T  e  1  e  m  a  ch  u  s _ 

Cow,  Lady  Carew  3rd » 

Cow,  Victoria - 

Cow,  Maiden 

Heifer,  Gaiety  Cth 

Heifer,  Stanw iek  Rose 

Cow,  Aj>ril  Rose J • 

Bull,  Duke  of  Howl  John 

Cow,  Baroness  Oxford  3rd 

Bull,  Duke  of  Leinster 

Cow,  Matchless  5th 

Cow,  Generous «... 

Bull,  Acropolis 

Bull,  Ninth  Duke  of  Treguuter 

Cow,  Duchess  119th 

Cow,  Honesty 

Cow,  Beauty  No.  22 

Co w,  Beauty  No.  35 , 

Cow,  R e d  C h e rry 

Cow,  Innocence' 2nd  of  Naseby 

Cow,  May  Duchess  15lh , 

Bull,  Sir  Simeon 


*  Particulars  relating  to  each  animal,  -when  omitted  from  the  text,  are  given  under  this  head.    Where 
uo  particulars  are  given  (either  under  this  head  or  in  the  text)  none  were  received  from  the  consuls. 

rii 


yln  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Description. 


4.  LOXGIIORXS. 


Bull,  Darewell.    Owned  by  Mr.  R.  Hall 

Cow,  head  of - -.  -  -  -  -  -  -  •  -  - 

Steers.    First  at  Islington.    Owned  by  Sir  John  Crewe. 

Bull,  Prince  Victor 

Cow,  Calke 


5.  RED  POLLS. 


Group.    Bull,  Davyson  3d  ;  cow,  Silent  Lady ;  cow,  Dolly. . 

Bull.    Owned  by  Hon.  J.  J.  Colman,  CamAv  House,  Norwich 

Cow.    Owned  by  Hon.  J.  J.  Colman,  Carrow  House,  Norwich 

Cow.    Owned  by  Hon.  J.  J.  Colinan,  Cacrow  House:  Norwich 

G.  SUSSEX. 

Cow     First  prize  at  Tunbridge  Wells.    Owned  by  Messrs.  J.  &  H.  Hessman. 
Heifer.    Second  prize  at  Tunbridge  Wells.    Owned  by  Mr.  J.  S.  Hodson 

Bull.    Owned  by  Mr.  John  Plumer,  Horsham,  Sussex 

Cow.    Owned  by  Mr.  John  Plumer,  Horsham,  Sussex 

Heifer.    A  representative  animal 

Heifer.    A  representative  animal 


7.  POLLED  AXGUS. 

Bull,  Englishman.    Owned  by  Mr.  S.  Stephenson,  Baliol  College  Farm,  Long  Benton, 

Newcastle-upou-Tyne. 
Cow,  Pride  of  Aberdeen,  at  four  years  of  age.    Owned  by  Mr.  Stephenson^also 


Bull'    Owned  by  Mr.  Clement  Stevens,  Sandyford  Villa,  Newcastle-upon-Tyne 

Cow.    Owned  by  Mr.  Clement  Stevens,  Sandyford  Villa,  Newcastle-upon-Tyne 

Bull,  Prince  of  the  Realm 

Yearling,  Favonia •-• 

Heifer,  Favorite • 

Bull,  Prince  of  the  Realm,  at  fourteen  months 

Group  of  heifers,  Kinochtry  breed - 

Bull,  Young  Hero  ;  bred  by  Mr.  Hannay,  of  Gavenwood.  "Won  first  prizes  at  Turriff  and 
Ba'nf  Shows ;  second  prize  at  the  Highland  Society  Show  ;  plate  at  Turriff,  &c.  Brought 
$1,340  at  public  sale  in  1883. 

Heifer,  Pride  of  Aberdeen  (plate  19  shows  the  matured  animal).  "Winner  of  prizes  as 
calf,  yearling,  and  two-year  old.  Bred  by  Mr.  Hannay,  Gavenwood.  . 

Calf.  Prospera  Princess.    Owned  by  Mr.  Hannay 

Heifer,  Benefit.    Won  first  prize  at  Huntly,  in  1883.    Calf  of  the  celebrated  prize  cow 

Btackbird,  of  Coratchy,  which  was  sold  for  $2,100. 

Heifer  calf,  Vignette.    First  prize  at  Banf  in  lfeS3.    Owned  by  Mr.  Hannay,  Gavenwood 
Bull  calf,  Allegro.  Bred  by  Mr.  Hannay.  Owned  by  Mr.  Geddes,  Blaerinore,  1883.   Sired 
by  Young  Hero. 

Heifer.    Bred  and  owned  by  Mr.  Ferguson,  of  Kinochtry,  Scotland 

Bull,  The  Shaw.  First  prizes  at  Highland  Show  and  Royal  Northern  Show  at  Aber- 
deen. Bred  and  owned  by  Mr.  Ferguson,  of  Kinochtry. 

Bull,  Sir  Maurice , 

Cow,  Juno 

Sybil  2d  of  Tillyfour 


8.  POLLED  GALLOWAYS. 


Bull.    Prize  winner  at  the  Highland  Society  Shows. 
Cow.    Prize  winner  at  the  Highland  Society  Shows. 

Bull,  Harden 

Cow,  Clara 

Heifer,  Lalla  Rookh... 


9.  HIGHLANDERS. 

West  Highland  Bull.    First  prize  at  the  Highland  Agricultural  Society  Show.    Owned 
by  the  Earl  of  Seafield,  Castle  Grant,  Grantown. 

"West  Highland  bull.    Two-year  old.    Prize  winner 

"West  Highland  bull.    Duke  of  Athole's  herd 

West  Highland  cow.    Duke  of  Athole's  herd 


10.  ATRSHIRES. 

Bull.    First  prize  "winner.    Owned  by  Mr.  Bartlemore - 

Cow..  No.  91  at  Islington.    Owned  by  Mr.  Drew 

Bull.  First  prize  winner  at  the  Highland  Agricultural  Society  Show.  Owned  by  Mr 
Parker,  Nether  Broomlands,  Ayrshire. 

Cows,  Callyhill  and  Mate.  Owned  by  the  Dowager  Duchess  of  Athole,  Dunkeld.  Con- 
sidered very  fine  specimens  of  the  breed. 

Cow,  Jane 

Cow.    (Representative  dairy  cow)... ~m ~m"m 


ILLUSTKAT1ONS.  IX 


Description. 


11.  JERSEYS 


Cow.    (A  representative  animal) 

Bull.    Owned  by  Mr.  E.  J.  Arnold,  Summerland  House,  Jersey. 
Cow.    Owned  by  Mr.  E.  J.  Arnold,  Summerland  House,  Jersey. 

Heifer  and  calves.    Prize  winners 

Cow,  Velveteen 

Cow,  Alice 

Cow,  Longueville  Belle ; 

Cow,  Coomassee 

Cow,  Luna 

Cow,  Lady  Emily  Foley  2d 


12.  GUERNSEYS. 

Cow,  Valentine  3d 

Bull,  Squire  of  Vauxbelets 

Cow.    First  in  her  class  at  Beading 

Cow,  Elegante 


13.  WELSH  CATTLE. 

Ox.    First  in  its  class  at  Agricultural  Hall.    Owned  by  Major  Platt 

Yearlings.    Owned  by  Mr.  Bowden , 

Ox.    Owned  by  Major  Platt,  of  Baugor 

Cow.    Owned  by  Major  Platt,  of  Bangor 

Yearling  bull  and  heifer 


14.  KERRY  CATTLE. 

Bull.    From  the  Knight  of  Kerry's  herd 

15.  SUFFOLES. 
Cow,  Wild  Roso 


FRENCH  CATTXJ3. 


1.  FLEMISH  AXD  CROSSES. 


CQW 

Cow 

Bull 

Bull 

Ox 

Cow 

Ox.    Durham-Flemish. 


2.  NORMANDY  AND  CROSSES. 


Cow , 

Bull 

Ox 

Ox.    Prize  Durham-Switz-Cotentine. . 
Ox.     Prize  Durham-Switz-Norrnandy. 

Cow 

Milch  cow.    Uorman-Cotentine 

Cow.    Durham-Norinan 


3.  BRITTANY  BREED, 


Cow 
Bull 
Ox.. 


4.  PARTHENAISE  BREED. 


P.ull 
Cow 


5.  CHAROLAISE  BREED. 
Cow... 
Bull...... 

Ox 

Prize  ox 

Ox.    Durham-Charolaise 


0.  LIMOUSINE  BREED. 

Bull 

Prize  ox 

Beef  cattle 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Description. 


7.  MANCELLE  CREED. 


Cow 

Ox.    Durham-Mancello 

Ox.    Prize,  Durham-Maiicelle^, . 


Cow 

A  prize  ox, 


8.  COMTOI8E  BREED. 
0.  FEMELINE  BREED. 


Bull 

11.  BALERS  BREED. 


Cow  and  calf 

12.  GARONNAJSE  BREED. 


Bull 
Bull 


Bull 
Bull 


13.  B  AX  A  DAIS. 


Bull.    Racing  animal. 
Bull 


14.  LANDA18E  BREED. 

15.  GASCON  BREED. 

Bull 

16.  BARETON  BREED. 

Bull 

II.  BEARNAISE  BREED. 
Cow 

15.  ALGERIAN  BREED. 
Cow 

19.  MISCELLANEOUS. 


Cow.  (revaudan  breed. 
Cow.  Bordelaiae  breed 
Cow.  Holland  breed. . . 


20.  BREED  NOT  DESIGNATED. 

French  bull 

French  cow - 

French  bull 

French  cow . 

French  ox 

French  cow 

French  bull 

French  cow 

French  bull f 

French  cow 

French  ox 

French  cow 

French  bull , 

French  cow 

French  bull « 

French  bull 


728 
728 
728 
728 
723 


SWISS  CATTLE. 


126 
127 

128 


1.  SPOTTED  (SIMMENTHAL)  BREED. 


Bernese  bull 

Simmenthal  cow  

Black  (spotted)  Freiburg  bull. 
Black  (spotted)  Freiburg  cow. 


283 
2'iH 
23) 


ILLUSTRATIONS.  XI 


Plate 
No. 


Description. 


Page. 


2.  BROWX  SCnWITZEK  BREED. 


130 
131 
i;53 
134 
133 
130 
137 
138 
139 
140 


Bull 

Cow 

Prize  cow 

Prize  cow,  true  typo. 


Prize  heifer,  true  type 

Heifer,  true  typo » 

Heifer,  true  typo 

Heifer,  fair  type , 

Cow,  variation  from  true  typo , 
Bull,  true  typo 


292 
292 
292 
292 
292 
292 
292 
292 
292 
292 


ITALIAN  CATTLE. 


141 
142 
143 
144 
145 
146 
147 
148 
149 
]50 
151 
152 
lf>3 
151 
155 
350 
157 
158 


Cow  of  Swiss  breed;  in  Lombard?.    Prize 

Rail,  Jupiter.    Fiedmontese  breed.    Prise 

Bull,  Pertinace.    Piedmontese  breed.    Prize 

Hull,  Napoli.    Pupliese  breed.    Prize 

Hull,  Grhinassi.    Pugliese  breed.    Prize 

Bull,  Tijrro.    Freiburg-Fruilana  breed.    Prizo 

Bull,  Maestro.    Mantua  breed.    Prize 

Cow,  Mantova.    Swiss  breed.    Prize 

Heifer,  Anversa.    Dutch  breed.    Prize 

Ox,  Fausta.    Pugliese  breed.    Prizo 

Cows,  Minerva  and  Chloe,    Brittany  breed.    Prize. 

Buffalo  d'ltalia 

A  Piedmont  bull 

A  Piedmont  cow 

A  Piedmont  cow 

A  Piedmont  mountain  bull 

A  Piedmont  mountain  heifer 

Bull,  Adam2d.    Chianina breed 


324 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
326 
328 
330 
330 
330 
330 
330 
334 


BELGIAN  CATTLE. 


159 
160 
JC2 
103 


Belgian  cow.    Dutch  breed. 
Flemish  cow 

Belgian 


A  herd  of  Belgian  cows. 


367 
367 
372 
373 


SPANISH  CATTLE. 

[The  pictures  of  these  Galician  oxen  were  taken  at  Corunnaaa  the  animals  were  being  shipped  to 

England.] 


168 
109 
170 
171 


Galician  ox;  white;  four  years;  price,  $91  ... 
Galician  ox  ;  yellow;  five  years;  price,  $87.50. 
Galiciauox;  yellow;  five  years;  price,  $86.70 
Galician  ox;  brown;  six  years;  price,  $83.75.. 


388 
888 
388 
388 


GERMAN  CATTLE. 


172 


173 


174 


175 


1.  NECKAR  BREED. 


Cow.    Ued,  with  white  face  and  white  lower  legs 


2.  SIMMENTHALER. 


Cow.    lied,  with  white  star  on  forehead. 
Cow  ... 


8.  LIMBOURG  BREED. 


Cow.    Yellow 


4,  TRIESDOBF*  BREED. 


Cow.    Spotted,  red  and  white 


•391 


391 

404 


391 


Erroneously  printed  Friesdorf  on  page  392. 


XII  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Plate 
No. 


Description. 


5.  ALB  BREED. 

Cow.    Bed,  with  white  belly  and  lower  legs 

0.  SCHWAB  HALL  BREED. 

Cow.    Dark  red  to  brown  ;  white  face 

7.  DITCH  BREED. 


Cow.    Black  and  white ;  white  forehead. 
Cow.... 


8.  MONTAFUNER  BREED. 


Cow.    Black  brown,  white  stripe  along  the  back , 
Cow J 


0.  MIESUCHEB  BREED. 
Cow.  White,  with  red -yellow  spots 

10.  PINZGAUER  BREED. 
Cow.  Red,  with  white  stripe  from  shoulder  to  rump 

11.  ALLGAUER  BREED. 


Cow.    Yellow-brown. 
Cow 


12.  8CHWITZER  BREED. 
Cow.    Dark  brown;  Black  doe-Mouth 

13.  VOIGHTLAND  BREED. 

Cow.    Color,  chestnut  brown ;  yellow  tail  tuft 

Head  of  a  Voightland  bull 

Head  of  a  Voightland  cow 


14.  ANGELN  BREED. 

Cow.    Color,  red-brown 

Prize  bull,  Thomas 

Prize  cow 


15.  PODOLISCHE  BREED. 

Cow.    Color  yellow ;  long  horns ;  originally  from  Southern  Eussia  ;  meat  cattle. 
16.  MtJRZTHALER  BREED. 

Cow.    Color,  gray;  link  between  the  Steppe  and  Mountain  breed 

17.  CLAN  BREED. 


Bull 

18.  OLDENBURG  AND  EAST  FRISIAN  BREED. 


"Wiltermarsh  prize  bull,  Xeptimc 

Wiltermarsh  prize  cow,  Lean  da 

Oldenburg  prige  bull,  Budjadinger  3d 

Oldenburg  prizojiqw,  Allinuth 

Oldenburg-Budjiainger  prize  bull 


Oldenburg  prize  heifer,  Ivest  von  Oldenburg 
East  Frisian  prize  bul* 


prize  bull,  Amor ;  3  years 

East  Frisian  cow ;  a  celebrated  milker '.'.'. 

East  Frisian  cow ;  Sieglinde,  seven  years  old ;  a  good  milker. 
East  Frisian  bull.    Owned  by  the  Crown  Prince 


19.  ME8SEIRCH  (BADEN)  BREED. 

Cow.    Front  view 0 

Cow.    Side  view 

Cow.    Side  view 

Bull.    Frontview 

Bull.    Side  view ". 

Yearling  heifer.    Side  view 


20.  HARZ  BREED. 

Bull.    Five  years  old.    Owned  by  Mr.  Stahl,  of  Altenau  on  the  Harz 

Cow.    Six  years  old.    Owned  by  Mr.  Cronfaeger,  of  Clausthal,  on  the  Harz 

Cow.    Seven  to  eight  years  old.    Owned  by  Mr.  Bohnhorst,  of  Clausthal,  on  the  Harz 


ILLUSTRATIONS.  XIII 


Description. 


21.  MISCELLANEOUS  BREEDS. 


A  yoke  of  Bavarian  working  cattle  — 

Bavarian  prize  bull 

Bava:  '.an  prize  cow 

Porsieranian  prize  bull,  Blondin 

Breitenburg  prize  bull,  Conrad 

German  Shorthorn  prize  cow,  Alice  ... 
Polled  Angus  bull,  Admiral ;  imported. 


DUTCH  CATTLE. 


224    Cow,  Wouije.    A  celebrated  breeder  and  milker. 


RUSSIAN  CATTLE. 


Cholmogovian  cow.    Black  and  white ;  five  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Arch- 
Cholmo'govian  cow.    Black ;  six  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  A*rchangel,  north- 


ern group. 

Cholmogovian  cow.  Iced  and  white ;  six  years  old.  Habitat,  government  of  Archangel, 
northern  group - 

Eed  and  white  ox ;  five  years  old  ;  yields  about  800  pounds  of  meat.  Habitat,  govern- 
ment of  Archangel,  northern  group 

Dun  cow.    Calved  six  times.    Habitat,  government  of  Vologda,  northern  group 

Gray  hornless  cow.  Mne  years  old ;  yields  about  324  pounds  of  meat.  Habitat,  govern- 
ment of  Vologda,  northern  group , 

Dark-gray  hornless  ox.  Five  years  old ;  yields  from  G48  to  684  pounds  of  meat.  Habitat, 
government  of  Vologda,  northern  group 

Gray  ox.  Five  years  old ;  yields  about  1,260  pounds  of  meat  when  in  good  condition. 
Habitat,  government  of  Vologda,  northern  group , 

Black  cow.    Eleven  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Yavoslaff,  central  group 

Ked  cow.    Four  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Yavoslaff,  central  group 

Native  cow.    Habitat,  government  of  Kostroma,  central  group 

Black  and  white  cow.    Five  years  old.    Habitat,  governniea  of  Kostroma,  central  group. 

Eed  and  white  bull.  Three  years  old ;  yields  about  720  pounds  of  meat.  Habitat,  gov- 
ernment of  Kostroma,  central  group 

Black  bull  (white  face  and  legs).  Three  years  old;  yields  about  648  pounds  of  meat. 
Habitat,  government  of  Kostroma,  central  group 

Black  and  white  cow.    Five  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Viatka,  central  group . . 

Black  hornless  cow.    Five  yeara  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Viatka,  central  group  ., 

Black  and  white  hornless  cow.  Seven  years  old.  Habitat,  government  of  Perm,  cen- 
tral group , 

Black  hornless  cow.    Three  years  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Perm,  central  group 

White  bull  with  red  ears.    Four  yeara  old.    Habitat,  government  of  Perm,  central 


A  Finnish  bull 

A  Finnish  cow 

Skull,  Bos  primigenius 

Skull,  Beg  laiifrons 

Skull  of  Yaroslaff  bull . 
Skull  of  Yaroslaff  bull. 

Polish  bull 

Polish  cow , 

Polish  bull 

Polish  bull 

Polish  bull 


HUNGARIAN  CATTLE, 


Bull.    White  native. 
Cow.    White  native. 


CANADIAN  CATTLE. 


Jersey  cow.    Mary  Anno  of  St.  Lambert'. 
Jersey  cow.    Oak  lands  Cora 


XIV  ILLUSTRATIONS , 

MEXICAN  CATTLE. 


Description, 


Pago. 


Cow 

Oxen 

Lull 

Mexican  cattle  brands. 


BRAZILIAN  CATTLE. 


Native  oxen  and  carfc »-••• • *• 

ITativocow 


SINGHALESE  CATTLE. 


Half -breed  bullocks  and  e.xrt  . 
Draught  bullocks  in  Colombo. 

Family  bandy 

Tanj ore  draught  ox 

Halt-breed  draught  bullock. .- 
Plowing  with  oxen  in  Ceylon. 
Hauling  timber  in  Ceyjoa  .... 
Ceylon  buffalo  cart 


SCIENTIFIC  DAIRY  IMPLEMENTS  AND  MACHINES. 


Milk  test:  Specific  gravity  of  milk  from  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fig.  1) 

Cream  test:  Cream  by  volume,  from  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fig.  2) 

Cream  test:  Cream  by  weight,  from  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fig. 8) 

Milk  test :  Agreement  of  specitic  gravity  of  milk  with  actual  weight  of  cream.  (Fi?.  4) . 
Cream  and  butter  test:  Agreement  of  cream  by  weight,  with  butter,  by  weight,  from 

milk  of  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fig.  5) 

Butter  test:  Butter  from  milk,  by  weight,  from  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fie:.  6) 

Butter  test :  Butter  from  cream,  'i'roni  milk  of  different  breeds  of  cows.  (Fig.  7) 

Milk-testing  set :  Lactometer,  creamonieter,  and  thermometer , 

Guevenno's  original  lactometer,  or  lactodensimeter , 

Creamometer  on  stand 

German  creamometer  or  cream-testing  tube , 

Lactobntry ometcr  on  stand,  with  stopper 

Feser's  lactroacope 

Copper  bath,  showing  three  pipettes  and  three  laetrobutrymneter  tubes  within , 

Aerometer  for  extracting  fats ;  Professor  Soxhlet's 

De  Lavel's  Swedish  separator ;  drum,  milk  chamber ;  cream  chamber 

H.  C.  Peterson's  Danish  separator 

Fjord'*  regular,  cream 

Fjord's  regulator — by  this  machine  any  percentage  of  cream  can  bo  skimmed  by  the 

Danish  separator 1 

Scale  showing  the  value  of  each  system - 

Vertical  drum  cream  separator  of  Petersen,of  Hamburg 

Aarhus  cream  separator 

Narskov  centrifugal  separator 

Lefeldt  cream  separator • 

Lefeldt  cream  separator  ........................... •. 


BTJTCHEKING  AND  KILLING  CATTLE. 


How  the  Paris  butchers  cnt  up  a  beef  X. 

How  the  Lisle  butchers  cut  np  a  beef 

How  the  London  butchers  cnt  up  a  beef. 
Swiss  method  of  kiting  cattle 

*  - 


ILLUSTRATIONS.  XV 

MODEL  FARM  AND  CATTLE  HOUSES. 


Plate 
No. 

Description. 

Page. 

266 

5C3 

267 

1'arm  buildings  of  the  future;  plan  illustrating  principles  in  arrangements  as  taught 

503 

193 

Plan  of  farm  house  and  surroundings  on  the  declivity  of  the  Seven  Mountains,  Ger- 

406 

MILK  AND  MILKMAIDS. 


161 
164 
]65 
166 
167 

371 

374 
374 
374 
374 

ENGLISH  SHEEP. 


367 

788 

368 

789 

369 

78Q 

LETTER 


FROM 


THE  SECRETARY  OF  STATE, 


TRANSMITTING  TO 


The  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives  reports,  in  reply  to  a  Depart- 
ment circular,  from  the  consul?  of  the  United  States,  on  cattle  and  dairy 
farming  and  the  markets  for  cattle,  beef,  and  dairy  products  in  their 
several  districts. 


JANUARY  28,  1886.— Eeferred  to  the  Committee  on  Agriculture  aucl  ordered  to  be 

printed. 


DEPARTMENT  OF  STATE, 

Washington,  January  26,  1886. 

SIR:  At  the  request  of  some  of  our  leading  stockmen,  a  circular, 
dated  July  18, 1883,  covering  the  question  of  cattle  and  cattle  products 
in  foreign  countries,  was  transmitted  to  our  consuls,  with  the  view  of 
receiving  therefrom  such  information  as  might  be  useful  to  the  stock- 
breeders and  dairy  farmers  of  the  United  States  in  their  efforts  to  im- 
prove our  native  stock,  and  to  develop  a  foreign  market  for  our  surplus 
cattle  and  cattle  products,  i  have  now  the  honor  to  submit  herewith 
the  reports  received  in  answer  to  this  circular. 

The  forms  presented  by  the  stockmen,  and  which  were  incorporated 
into  the  circular,  were  so  contracted  in  scope  and  so  technical  in  arrange- 
ment as  to  satisfy  the  Department  that  the  consular  responses  thereto 
would  not  cover  the  many  interests  involved ;  hence  some  memoranda, 
in  the  form  of  suggestions  and  directions,  were  added.  The  principal 
points  covered  by  these  memoranda  were  as  follows  : 

(1)  The  host  methods  of  exporting  cattle  to  the  United  States  ;  the  best  animals  to 
export;  the  best  routes  of  export  and  the  estimated  cost  for  freight ;  the  purchasing 
prices  of  the  animals  and  the  estimated  expenses  for  attendance  and  fpod  while  en 
route. 

(2)  The  total  number  of  cattle  in  each  district  or  country  and   the  percentage  of 
the  several  breeds ;  the  percentage  for  the  dairy  and  the  butcher;  the  increase  or  de- 
crease of  stock,  and  the  causes  thereof. 

(3)  Whether  the  stock  of  each  country  is  sufficient  for  home  demands  ;  if  in  excess 
of  homo  demands,  the  countries  to  which  the  excess  is  exported ;  if  insufficient  for  home 
demands,  the  countries  from  which  the  needed  supplies  are  drawn. 

(4)  How  much  of  these  supplies,  and  their  nature,  is  drawn  from  the  United  States; 
the  best  means  for  increasing  the  exports  to  each  country  from  the  United  States. 

In  regard  to  that  part  of  the  general  subject  under  consideration 
which  deals  with  the  breeds  of  cattle,  their  feeding,  housing,  and  hand- 

3 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


ling,  the  best  breeds  for  importation  into  the  United  States  and  the 
best  manner  of  importation  hither,  and  the  various  other  points  con- 
nected therewith,  and  which'from  their  nature,  being  altogether  mat- 
ters of  detail,  are  incapable  of  being  compressed  into  such  statistical 
compactness  as  would  render  them  available  or  useful  in  a  short  intro- 
ductory letter,  those  interested  are  referred  to  the  several  reports, 
•which  are  both  exhaustive  and  valuable,  being  prepared  in  many  in- 
stances by  recognized  authors  and  experts,  or  from  information  directly 
supplied  by  such.  That  portion  of  the  subject,  however,  which  deals 
with  foreign  meat  and  dairy-produce  markets,  our  present  share  in  sup- 
plying the  same,  and  the  best  means  for  the  enlargement  of  our  trade 
therein,  being  more  susceptible  of  profitable  statistical  analyses  than 
cattle-breeding,  the  following  figures  are  submitted,  in  the  interest  of 
our  exporters  of  cattle  and  cattle  products. 

LIVE- CATTLE  TRADE. 

It  would  seem  as  if  the  cattle,  meat,  and  dairy  producers  of  the  world — 
that  portion,  at  least,  which  prosecutes  advanced  agriculture — look  to 
the  British  markets  for  the  consumption  of  their  surplus  products.  Out- 
side of  our  oleomargarine  trade  with  Holland,  and  a  comparatively 
small  export  of  salted  beef,  tallow,  butter,  and  cheese  to  Canada,  the 
West  Indies,  &c.,  our  trade  in  cattle  and  cattle  products  is  with  the 
United  Kingdom,  as  the  following  statement  will  show: 

Statement  showing  Hie  exports  of  cattle  and  cattle  products  from  the   United  States  during 

the  year  1884. 


Description. 

To  the  United 
Kingdom. 

To  all  other 
countries. 

Total. 

$17  336  606 

$518  889 

$17  855  495 

11  51C  309 

470  962 

11  987  331 

2  54  '•*  V2 

631  645 

3  173  767 

Salted  beef  

2  058  383 

1,  143,  892 

3,  202,  275 

Other  beef                 ....................            .  .  ..  . 

GO  ()98 

7  730 

67  758 

1  876  341 

1  874,430 

3,  750,  771 

Cheese 

10  508  526 

1  155  187 

11  663  713 

Beef  tallow    

2  9^1  008 

'  852  367 

4,793  375 

209  Oi;)0 

4  633  342 

4  842  362 

Condensed  milk    ...  ...      .        ............ 

203  008 

45  321 

248,  329 

Total  

49,  251,  411 

12,  333,  765 

61,  585,  176 

In  the  column  of  exports  "to  all  other  countries"  are  products  ex- 
ported to  Canada  to  the  value  of  $2,635,418,  a  large  portion  of  which  was 
re-exported  to  England,  and  oleomargarine  to  Holland,  which  also  found 
its  way  as  "butter"  to  the  British  markets,  as  will  appear  further  on, 
to  the  value  of  $4,127,827.  This  would  reduce  the  exports  to  all  other 
countries  at  least  $5,000,000,  and  increase  those  to  the  United  Kingdom 
by  that  amount.  Our  exports  during  the  year  may  therefore  be  set 
down  as  follows :  To  the  United  Kingdom,  $54,250,000 ;  to  all  other 
countries  in  Europe,  $3,200,000;  to  all  countries  outside  of  Europe, 
$4,108,176. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  statistics  showing  the  conditions  which  pre- 
vail in  the  British  markets,  and  the  means  which,  must  be  taken  to  hold 
and  enlarge  our  interests  therein,  cover,  for  all  practical  purposes,  our 
commercial  relations  with  the  outside  world,  as  far  as  our  exports  of 
cattle  and  cattle  products  are  concerned.  The  other  countries  of  Europe 
essay  to  supply  their  own  wants  in  this  regard,  and  mainly  succeed  in 
so  doing,  having  a  small  surplus  for  export  besides.  It  should,  how- 
ever,  be  borne,  in.  mind  that  many  of  those  countries  are  relatively  no 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


richer  in  cattle  and  cattle  products  than  the  United  Kingdom,  but  their 
consumption  of  meat  food  is  very  limited,  while  the  British  people  are 
a  meat-eating  people;  indeed/ they  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  only 
meat-eating  people  in  Europe,  for  the  general  populations  of  the  other 
countries  regard  meat  as  a  luxury,  to  be  enjoyed  sparingly  on  rare  oc- 
casions. 

The  same  may  be  generally  asserted,  though  in  a  more  modified  de- 
gree, in  regard  to  the  general  consumption  of  butter  and  cheese.  Hence, 
while  the  other  countries  of  Europe  offer  limited  fields  for  the  consump- 
tion of  our  cattle  products,  fields  which  are,  but  which  should  not  be, 
overlooked  in  our  efforts  to  supply  the  imperial  demands  of  the  United 
Kingdom,  we  must  continue  to  look  upon  the  latter  as  our  principal 
market,  and  direct  our  best  efforts  toward  fulfilling  all  the  conditions 
by  which  it  is  governed,  and  continue  to  give  the  British  people  supe- 
rior products,  at  prices  which  will  leave  as  little  cause  for  dissatisfac- 
tion and  as  little  room  for  successful  competition  as  possible.  We  have 
done  much  to  control  the  supply  of  the  British  market,  but  we  have,  in 
our  anxiety  to  reach  voluminous  results,  neglected  many  details,  to  our. 
loss  and  to  the  advantage  of  those  countries  which  have  established 
themselves  in  British  esteem,  and  which  command  a  successful  trade 
in  the  British  market,  by  extreme  care  and  attention  in  the  preparation 
of  their  products— in  fine,  by  specially  catering  to  the  tastes  of  the  con- 
sumers. 

Statement  showing  the  number  and  value  of  cattle  imported  into  the  United  Kingdom  during 
the  year  1884,  the  countries  whence  imported,  and  their  value  per  head,  as  compiled  from 
British  official  statistics. 

OXEN  AND  BULLS. 


Whence  imported. 

Number. 

Value. 

Value  per 
head. 

United  States  

139  213 

$16  120  600 

$115  79 

59  054 

6  l^S  600 

103  69 

Denmark  

42,746 

4  160  160 

97  32 

17  903 

1  866  °40 

104  24 

Germany  ......        .      ..      ... 

17  310 

1  C81  560 

97  14 

17  432 

1  '  580*  220 

90  91 

12,  426 

1  205  280 

97  00 

Holland  

2  561 

247  860 

96  74 

Norway  

865 

84  078 

97  08 

Channel  Islands  .......... 

131 

21  578 

164  72 

West  Africa  

5 

170 

34  00 

Total  

309  696 

33  100  346 

106  88 

COWS. 


44,  167 

$4,218,480 

$95  51 

7  182 

6°8  398 

87  49 

4,110 

394,  632 

96  02 

2,160 

256,  608 

118  53 

British  North  America.  ,       ... 

1,977 

195,  858 

99  07 

Holland  

1  123 

86  508 

77  03 

United  States  

487 

52,  002 

106  78 

Norway  

107 

10,  084 

94  24 

Total  

61,  314 

5,  842,  570 

9520 

CALVES. . 


41,354 

$957,  134 

$23  14 

9,349 

186,  624 

19  96 

3  371 

81  793 

24  28 

858 

25,  432 

71  44 

Allother  

67 

928 

13  83 

Total  

54,497 

1,  251,  911 

22  97 

6  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

From  the  foregoing  statement  showing  the  imports  of  oxen  and  bulls 
into  the  United  Kingdom — that  is,  butcher  stock — it  will  bo  seen  that 
American  cattle,  if  we  except  the  Channel  Islands  cattle,  which  are  im- 
ported for  breeding  purposes,  command  higher  prices  than  the  cattle 
imported  from  any  other  country,  and  we  may  assume  that  the  best 
butcher  stock  of  the  world  is  represented  in  that  market.  The  cattle  im- 
ported from  Canada,  although  analogous  to  American  cattle,  are  valued 
at  more  than  $12  per  head  less  than  our  cattle,  while  those  of  European 
countries  are  valued  at  from  $25  to  $18  per  head  less  than  ours,  with 
the  exception  of  Portuguese  cattle,  which  only  fall  short  $11.55  per  head. 

This,  therefore,  bears  out  some  of  our  consuls  in  their  assertions  that 
American  cattle  are  the  best  general  cattle  in  the  world.  Having  the 
finest  cattle  ranges  and  most  favorable  climate  for  cattle-raising,  the 
superiority  of  our  cattle,  as  asserted  in  the  British  markets,  is  surprising 
only  to  those  who  have  been  in  the  habit — persons  who  assume  rather 
than  reason — of  connecting  high-grade  cattle  with  the  Old  World  only. 
The  superiority  of  our  cattle  and  cattle  ranges  is  nowhere  better  under- 
stood than  by  the  advanced  and  intelligent  cattlemen  of  Ontario.  This 
is  verified  in  many  ways,  but  in  no  way  more  emphatically  than  by  the 
fact  that  Canadian  cattle  companies,  in  order  to  keep  up  to  the  demands 
of  the  British  markets — Canadian  cattle  falling  far  below  American  cat- 
tle therein — have  been  forced  to  leave  Canadian  pastures  for  those  of 
the  United  States,  as  a  report  upon  the  subject  from  the  consul  at 
Sherbrooke  will  substantiate.  The  intelligent  and  sensible  efforts  of 
those  companies  for  the  improvement  of  their  vast  herds  are  worthy  of 
deep  study  on  the  part  of  our  cattlemen. 

The  Ontario  Agricultural  Commission,  in  the  report  of  its  proceedings 
published  in  1881,  refers  in  complimentary  terms  to  the  superiority  of 
American  cattle.  Mr.  A.  J.  Thompson,  a  large  shipper  of  Canadian 
cattle  to  England,  testified  as  follows  before  the  commission : 

The  animals  that  come  from  Kansas  City  are  far  superior  to  Canadian  grain-fed 
cattle;  there  is  no  comparison  between  them.  People  have  the  idea  that  there  is  no 
breeding  among  the  cattle  in  the  Western  States,  but  this  is  a  great  mistake,  for  these 
cattle  are  all  pretty  well  bred. 

A  statement,  attached  hereto,  has  been  prepared  which  shows  the  im- 
portations of  cattle  (cows  and  calves  omitted)  into  the  United  Kingdom 
duriug  the  eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1884.  These  details  em- 
brace the  beginning  and  development  of  our  cattle  and  fresh-beef  trade 
with  that  country,  and  are  of  special  interest  to  our  cattlemen  and 
packers. 

This  statement  goes  to  show  that  our  exportations  of  cattle  to  Europe 
really  began  in  the  year  1877 — previous  exportations  being  more  or 
less  in  the  nature  of  experiments— and  reached  their  maximum  in  1880; 
the  imports  into  the  United  Kingdom  from  the  United  States  during 
that  year  amounting  to  $17,889,174,  against  $16,120,600  during  the  year 
1884. 

The  magnitude  to  which  this  trade  would  have  grown  were  it  not  for 
adverse  legislation—legislation  the  result  of  fear  lest  cattle  disease 
might  be  introduced  into  the  United  Kingdom  through  the  free  import 
of  American  cattle— which  hampered  the  landing,  and  the  handling  and 
killing  after  landing,  of  the  animals,  would  only  have  been  limited  by 
our  capacity  to  supply  the  demand. 

The  changes  which  have  taken  place  in  the  British  foreign  cattle 
trade  during  the  decade  ending  with  1884,  and  the  relative  positions  of 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


the  countries  from  which  the  cattle  were  drawn  at  the  beginning  and 
end  of  the  decade,  are  shown  in  the  following  statement : 

Statement  showing  the  number  of  oxen  imported  into  the  United  Kingdom  during  the  years 

1875  and  1834. 

[The  countries  from  whence  imported  are  given  in  the  order  of  their  importance  in  1884,  the  figures 

75.1 


Whence  imported. 

1875. 

1884. 

Whence  imported. 

1875. 

1884. 

United  States  (10)  

299 

139,  213 

Sweden  (8)     

3  637 

12  426 

Canada  (9)  

1,212 

59,  054 

Holland  (3)  

27  396 

2  561 

Denmark  (2)        

29  087 

42,  746 

Norway  (11) 

227 

865 

Portugal  (5)  

21,  632 

17,  903 

Belgium  (7)  

7  139 

Spain  (4)  

23,  850 

17,482 

8,986 

50  141 

17  310 

It  will  here  be  seen  that  of  all  the  European  countries  which  contrib- 
uted in  1875  to  the  British  cattle  trade,  Denmark  and  Sweden  only 
show  an  increase  in  1884.  Germany,  which  held  a  good  first  place  in 
1875,  has  fallen  to  the  sixth  place  in  1884,  its  exports  in  the  latter  year 
being  not  much  over  one-third  what  they  were  in  1875,  while  Belgium 
and  France  have  fallen  out  of  the  trade  altogether.  It  follows  that  were 
the  United  Kingdom  dependent  upon  Europe  to-day  for  its  foreign  meat 
supplies,  the  British  people  would  have  to  eat  less  beef  or  pay  far  more 
for  what  they  consume  than  they  now  pay.  One  principle  seems  to  be 
established  in  the  foregoing  showing,  viz,  that  the  United  Kingdom 
can  rely  no  longer  upon  Europe  for  its  foreign-cattle  wants,  and  that 
the  United  States  must,  for  some  years  at  least,  be  looked  to  for  the 
greater  portion  of  such  supplies. 

THE  FRESH-BEEF  TRADE. 

As  the  trade  in  fresh  beef  is  so  closely  connected  with  the  trade  in 
live  cattle,  and  as  the  former  has  so  much  bearing  upon  the  latter  as  to 
make  it  impossible  to  discuss  understandingly  the  one  without  taking 
the  other  into  consideration,  the  following  statistics  concerning  the 
fresh -beef  importations  into  the  United  Kingdom  are  given: 

Statement  showing  the  quantities  and  value  of  the  fresh  beef  importedinto  the  United  King- 
dom from  the  several  countries  during  the  year  1884. 


Whence  imported. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Value  per 
pound. 

United  States      

Pounds. 
90  904  128 

$10  724  579 

Cents. 
11  80 

3  551  384 

352  107 

6  92 

Canada                  ............  .                  .......  ..... 

2  643  872 

320  531 

12.12 

711  648 

89  409 

12  56 

308  448 

32*  843 

10.64 

France                   .  ............        ......  ................. 

104,  272 

17,  593 

16.88 

151,  648 

16,  018 

10.56 

Total  

98,  375,  200 

11,  553,  080 

11.74 

This  statement  shows  that  we  virtually  monopolize  the  trade  of  the 
United  Kingdom  in  foreign  fresh  beef. 

The  imports  of  fresh  beef  into  the  United  Kingdom  in  1874  amounted 
to  about  3,773,464  pounds,  of  which  3,650,784  pounds  were  imported 


8 


CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 


from  Germany,  and  only  122,680  pounds  from  the  United  States.  Our 
own  official  returns  make  no  special  mention  of  any  exports  of  fresli 
beef  before  the  year  1877,  when  49,210,990  pounds — the  whole  export — 
were  shipped  to  the  United  Kingdom.  Our  trade  in  fresh  beef  has 
sprung  into  sudden  magnitude,  having  steadily  increased  from  49,210,990 
pounds,  valued  at  $4,552,523,  in  1877,  to  120,784,004  pounds,  valued  at 
$11,987,331,  in  1884. 

The  British  official  returns  place  the  following  per-pound  value  upon, 
the  imports  of  fresh  beef  into  the  kingdom  during  the  years  1880,  1881, 
1882,  1883,  and  1884: 


Whence  imported. 

1880. 

1881. 

1882. 

1S83. 

1884. 

United  States  

Cents. 
11.27 

Ctnts. 
11.48 

Cents. 
1L'.  00 

Cents. 
]•)  02 

Cents. 
11.  SO 

Canada 

11  03 

12  51 

11  cO 

1"  01 

1°  32 

Kussia.  ......................   ......   ..  .....        ........  ... 

10.  84 

9.  92 

Germany 

13  31 

11  56 

11  71 

12  91 

12  56 

Australasia.......     ..  ... 

I'^.OG 

10  64 

France  

13.19 

10.88 

It  will  be  seen  that  American  beef  maintained  the  lead  of  all  countries 
from  which  meat  is  drawn  in  any  quantity.  The  slight  price  decrease  in 
1884  can  have  no  significance  when  the  immense  quantity  imported  from 
the  United  States  (90.904,128  pounds)  is  taken  into  consideration. 

Our  consular  reports  a  few  years  back  repeatedly  referred  to  the 
prejudice  existing  in  Great  Britain  against  American  beef,  while  at  the 
same  time  the  British  people  were  unknowingly  proving  the  ground- 
lessness for  such  prejudice  by  eating  large  quantities  thereof  under  the 
name  of  prime  English  beef— a  trick  of  the  butchers,  who  had  helped  to 
create  and  maintain  the  prejudice  referred  to. 

The  consuls  asserted  that  this  prejudice,  principally  engendered  and 
sustained  by  the  butchers,  whose  interests  it  was  feared  would  be  injured 
by  the  American  fresh-beef  trade,  required  for  its  total  dissipation  only 
comprehensive  and  intelligent  action  on  the  part  of  our  exporters  in 
placing  their  meat  properly  before  the  British  people,  who  would  un- 
doubtedly consult  and  conserve  their  own  interests  in  the  premises. 

Central  meat  depots,  with  outlying  shops  in  the  principal  cities  of  the 
kingdom,  controlled  and  directed  by  British  agents  in  the  employ  of 
the  American  shippers,  or  having  an  interest  in  the  business,  were  sug*- 
gested  as  the  radical  remedy  for  the  immediate  development  of  an  al- 
most unlimited  trade  in  fresh  beef. 

Eecent  reports  make  no  reference  to  this  phase  of  the  trade,  and  it  is 
to  be  assumed  that  the  British  public  have  become  more  or  less  convinced 
that  American  cattle  and  American  meats  are  the  v^ry  best  in  the  world, 
outside  of,  perhaps,  their  own  selected  cattle  and  beef.  It  may  even  be 
doubted  whether  the  best  forced-fed  English  beef  is  any  better  than  the 
beef  raised  on  our  rich  and  succulent  ranges. 

The  following  extracts  from  a  report  written  by  the  consul  at  Manches- 
ter in  1882  will  illustrate  this  peculiar  phase  of  our  fresh-beef  trade  in 
England : 

The  wide  difference  between  the  price  English  butchers  pay  our  American  export- 
ers for  their  meats,  as  compared  with  the  price  they  charge  for  the  same  at  retail, 
leads  me  to  again  refer  to  the  great  need  of  the  adoption  of  better  methods  for  placing 
our  meats  on  sale  here. 

At  present  the  English  dealer  makes  an  unusual  profit  out  of  the  American  meat 
supply.  This  is  often  done  by  misrepresenting  the  kind  of  meat  he  sells,  for  it  is  a 
common  practice,  I  am  credibly  informed,  to  claim  that  the  beef,  mutton,  &c.,  on  sale 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING.  9 

is  all  English,  when,  in  fact,  most  of  the  weight  on  kand  has  just  come  from  the 
American  supply  at  Liverpool.  Not  long  ago  a  case  in  point  came  under  ruy  own  ob- 
servation. I  made  inquiry  of  a  retail  butcher  if  he  sold  American  meats,  and  he  re- 
plied with  some  warmth,  ""No,  sir,  I  could  not  sell  it  here."  The  same  afternoon  I 
was  conversing  with  a  gentleman,  and  incidentally  mentioned  what  the  butcher  had 

told  me.    He  laughed  and  said,  "  Two  days  ago  I  was  coming  down street  in 

Manchester,  and  saw  this  same  butcher  drop  a  paper.  I  picked  it  up,  and  it  was  a 
long  bill  of  American  meat,  and  when  he  assured  you  he  sold  no  American  beef  he 
forgot  that  all  his  stock  that  day  was  American  beef,  and  American  only!  "  This  plain 
statement  of  a  fact  illustrates  how  easy  it  has  heretofore  been  for  the  English  retail 
dealer  to  cheat  and  deceive  consumers  as  to  the  beef  sold.  The  prejudice  against 
American  beef  is  largely  a  thing  of  the  past. 

And  now  that  consumers  are  learning  the  tricks  played  upon  them  by  butchers,  ifc 
would  be  a  wise  plan,  in  my  opinion,  for  American  exporters  of  beef  and  mutton  to 
take  steps  to  compel  fair  dealing,  to  say  the  least,  on  the  part  of  retail  butchers  here. 
Several  years  ago  shops  for  the  sale  of  American  meats  were  opened  in  various  cen- 
ters, but  owing  to  the  hue  and  cry  raised  against  them  by  the  retail  trade  generally, 
and  also  on  account  of  the  prejudices  with  which  consumers  always  regard  a  new 
source  of  supplies  of  food  for  this  country,  the  plan  did  not  prove  a  success.  Besides, 
the  supply  was,  owing  to  the  uncertainty  of  the  new  enterprise,  irregular — a  state  of 
things  which  no  longer  exists.  I  believe  the  present  is  a  favorable  time  to  repeat 
the  experiment  under-wise  and  judicious  management.  Our  meats  have  won  their 
way  everywhere,  and  there  is  now  no  good  reason  why  our  exporters  should  not  re- 
ceive at  least  2  cents  a  pound  more  for  their  meat  at  Liverpool,  leaving  retail 
butchers  here  a  round  profit,  and  enabling  the  consumer  to  purchase  the  same  at  a 
reduction  from  present  prices  of  from  2  to  3  cents  per  pound.  A  cheaper  supply  of 
good  beef  would  insure  an  enormous  increase  in  the  quantity  consumed,  so  that 
cheaper  meat  would  bo  a  great  boon  to  many  of  the  laboring  poor,  who  now  rarely 
eat  beef  on  account  of  its  expense.  American  meat  would  be  as  readily  bought  under 
its  right  name  as  it  is  now  under  a  false  name,  and  with  this  difference — the  pro- 
ducer and  consumer  would  each  be  benefited,  where  now  only  the  retail  dealer  reaps 
an  undue  profit. 

The  statistics  tlius  far  given  go  to  show  that  we  monopolize,  in  the 
sense  of  supply,  the  trade  in  foreign  fresh  beef  in  the  United  Kingdom ; 
and  as  it  wonld  seem  to  be  more  desirable  for  the  United  States  to 
supply  that  market  altogether  with  the  product  in  this  form,  rather 
than  in  the  form  of  live  cattle,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  those  most  directly 
concerned  will  so  perfect  and  enlarge  their  systems  of  preserving  and 
handling  as  to  do  away  altogether  with  what  under  the  very  best  condi- 
tions must  be  a  crude  and  troublesome  trade — the  shipment  of  live  cattle 
across  the  Atlantic. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  fresh-beef  form  would  also  be  more 
convenient  and  satisfactory  to  the  British  people,  and  save  them  all 
anxiety  in  regard  to  the  introduction  of  cattle  disease  from  the  United 
States,  of  which  they  seem  to  stand  in  constant  dread — otherwise  there 
would  be  no  necessity  for'laws  governing  the  import  of  live  cattle,  and 
regulations  for  the  control  of  the  stock  before  and  after  landing,  which, 
as  before  remarked,  greatly  retard  the  trade. 

The  fullest  investigation  into  the  conditions  which  surround  this  trade 
would  seem  to  place  the  fault — if  fault  it  be — for  the  shipment  of  live 
cattle  to  Great  Britain,  there  to  be  converted  ihto  meat,  instead  of 
shipping  from  the  United  States  in  its  meat  form,  at  the  doors  of  our 
cattlemen  and  beef  exporters.  The  fact  that  we  now  ship  90,000,000 
pounds  of  fresh  beef  annually  to  the  United  Kingdom  is  evidence  of 
our  ability  to  ship  three  times  that  amount,  and  with  comparatively  less 
trouble  and  expense  than  would  be  entailed  by  the  shipment  of  live 
cattle  to  produce  that  amount  of  meat  in  England,  besides  the  profit 
which  would  accrue  to  the  United  States  from  the  slaughtering  of  the 
animals,  the  preparation  of  the  meat,  the  hides,  horns,  hoofs,  bones, 
offal,  &c.,  all  of  which  represents  so  much  gold  to  our  manufacturers  and 
agriculturists. 


10 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


LIVE  CATTLE  IN  THE   SEVERAL  COUNTRIES. 

The  following  statistics,  mainly  official,  showing  the  number  of  cattle 
in  the  principal  countries  wherein  cattle-rearing  for  meat  and  dairy 
purposes,  or  for  either,  is  prosecuted,  will  enable  our  stockmen  to  ap- 
preciate the  present  and  prospective  conditions  which  affect  this  great 
industry  both  at  home  and  abroad : 

Cattle  in  the  principal  countries  of  Europe. 


Countries. 

Cows. 

All  other. 

Total. 

Number  of 
cattle  to 
each  1,000 
inhabitants. 

, 

24  088  000 

299  9 

741  598 

°7f>  019 

1  016  017 

528  0 

1  394  731 

796*  805 

2  191  636 

480  0 

808  790 

571  2?8 

]  470  078 

754  9 

8  961  921 

6  815*  48t 

15*  776*  702 

341  0 

Holland  

997  839 

45C  ;"G7 

l'  434'  406 

357  5 

790  178 

580  637 

1  382  815 

250  5 

7  113*242 

4  383  Oil 

11  416  253 

303  2 

Italy 

2  366  55G 

2  410  676 

4  783  932 

168  1 

4  138  6°5 

4  445  452 

8  58i  077 

351  2 

Hungary*                . 

1,  740,  399 

2,  857,  144 

4  597'  543 

283  9 

2  904  598 

170  5 

Switzerland 

552  427 

547  573 

1  100'  000 

372  3 

Portugal  

520  474 

125.1 

The  United  Kingdom 

10  826  705 

298  o 

Great  Britain 

2  1°4  020 

4  473  934 

6  597  954 

210  0 

Ireland 

l'417  431 

2  811,270 

4*  228*  751 

859  8 

Total  principal  countries 

99  093  136 

283  9 

The  statistical  rules  usually  applicable  for  the  deduction  of  results 
from  almost  any  general  industry  are  of  very  little  practical  use  when 
applied  to  the  cattle  industry  of  Europe.  The  United  Kingdom  and 
Eussia  may  be  cited  in  illustration.  The  former  is  the  largest  consumer 
of  foreign  cattle  among  the  nations  of  the  world,  while  the  latter  is  a 
country  upon  which  the  former  expects  in  the  very  near  future  to  draw 
for  a  large  portion  of  its  foreign  meat  supply ;  yet  the  United  Kingdom 
has  within  a  fraction  of  as  many  cattle  as  Kussia  to  each  1,000  inhab- 
itants, and  if  we  take  the  quality  of  the  stock  of  both  countries  into 
consideration — the  native  breeds,  which  constitute  the  general  stock  of 
Eussia,  yielding,  according  to  Consul-General  Stanton,  "  only  from  252 
to  288  pounds  of  coarse,  unsavory  meat " — the  odds  are  largely  in  favor 
of  the  United  Kingdom. 

Spain,  which  exports  largely  to  the  United  Kingdom,  has  only  170.5 
cattle  to  each  1,000  of  its  inhabitants;  Portugal,  with  much  less  than 
one-half  the  cattle  per  capita  of  the  United  Kingdom,  is  another  heavy 
exporter;  while  France,  with  a  fair  average  cattle  supply— 303.2  to  each 
1,000  inhabitants— imports,  over  and  above  its  exports,  from  70,000  to 
75,000  head  of  cattle  per  annum  for  consumption.  Consul  Williams,  of 
Eouen,  says  of  the  beef  consumed  in  France  one- tenth  is  imported.  The 
same  consul  says  that  France  imports  beef  cattle  in  large  numbers  from 
Italy;  yet  Italy  has  the  lowest  cattle  census  of  the  countries  of  Europe— 
that  is,  according  to  population— Portugal  excepted,  viz,  168.1  to  each 
1,000  of  its  inhabitants. 

Among  the  many  conditions  which  prevail  and  which  influence  the 
interests  of  the  several  countries,  in  so  far  as  those  interests  come  into 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  11 

conflict  with  the  cattle  and  cattle  products  of  the  United  States  in  for- 
eign markets,  the  following  may  be  cited : 

(1)  The  purposes  for  which  the  cattle  are  bred  and  reared — whether 
for  the  dairy  or  the  butcher. 

(2)  The  quality  of  the  cattle1. 

(3)  The  home  consumption  of  meat  and  dairy  products. 

Spain,  Portugal,  and  Italy  are  light  consumers  of  these  products; 
hence,  with  their  very  low  stock  rate,  their  ability  to  export  cattle. 

Switzerland,  France,  Holland,  and  Belgium  are  dairy  countries ;  that 
is,  the  dairy  is  the  principal  interest  and  the  butcher  but  an  incident. 

Austria  and  Hungary  have  fair  cattle  supplies,  but  their  export  is 
very  limited.  This,  however,  is  due  principally  to  the  stringent  cattle 
laws  of  Germany — laws  enacted  for  the  protection  of  German  cattle 
from  the  introduction  of  disease. 

The  exporting  cattle  countries  of  Europe  are  Denmark,  Portugal, 
Spain,  Germany,  Holland,  Sweden,  and  Russia.  From  the  arbitrary 
conditions  which  surround  the  industry 'in  these  countries,  and  in  view 
of  the  unlimited  fields  for  its  development  outside  of  Europe,  it  does 
not  appear  as  if  the  future  held  out  much  promise  for  cattle-breeding, 
for  export  at  least,  in  the  Old  World. 

The  United  Kingdom  being  the  only  country  in  Europe  which  imports 
cattle  and  fresh  beef  from  countries  outside  of  Europe,  such  imports 
may  be  regarded  as  those  which  Europe  cannot  supply.  The  interna- 
tional imports  and  exports  between  France,  Italy,  Switzerland,  Belgium, 
Holland,  Austria-Hungary,  and  Eussia  are  sufficient  unto  themselves, 
with  a  small  surplus  for  export  to  England.  This  surplus  was  as  fol- 
lows in  1884 : 

Cattle.—  From  Germany,  24,492  head  ;  from  Holland,  3,664  head. 

Fresh  beef.— From  Eussia,  3,551,184  pounds ;  from  Germany,  711,648 
pounds ;  from  France,  104,272  pounds. 

This,  it  will  be  seen,  is  a  very  small  surplus  lor  so  large  a  portion  of 
the  Continent,  and  a  population  of  about  250,000,000. 

The  other  countries  of  Europe,  Sweden,  Norway,  Denmark,  Spain, 
and  Portugal,  export  about  140,000  head  of  cattle  annually.  It  is  to 
these  that  Great  Britain  looks,  outside  of  Ireland,  for  any  regular  sup- 
ply of  European  cattle. 

The  total  annual  wants  of  the  United  Kingdom,  based  upon  the  as- 
sumption that  its  importations  cover  its  wants,  may  be  estimated  at 
480,000  head  of  foreign  cattle,  or  their  equivalent  In  fresh  beef.  This 
estimate  is  based  on  the  following  calculations :  In  1884  the  importations 
were  61,314  cows,  309,696  oxen,  98,375,200  pounds  of  fresh  beef,  and 
54,911  calves. 

The  value  of  the  fresh  beef,  as  may  be  seen  on  reference  to  the  sta- 
tistical table  heretofore  given,  is  a  little  over  one-third  the  value  of  the 
oxen,  and  it  is  therefore  assumed  that  the  98,375,200  pounds  of  fresh 
beef  represented  one- third  the  number  of  oxen  imported.  The  greater 
number  of  the  oxen  and  nearly  all  the  beef  being  American,  gives  addi- 
tional assurance  that  this  estimate  is  a  very  close  approximation  to  the 
real  figures.  The  value  of  five  calves  equaling  the  value  of  one  ox,  this 
import  is  equivalent  to  5,000  oxen. 

The  total  number  of  horned  cattle,  or  their  equivalent  as  above,  im- 
ported into  the  United  Kingdom  from  European  countries  during  tho 
year  1884  amounted  to  -about  180,000  head,  leaving  300,000  head  to  be 
supplied  by  countries  outside  of  Europe.  These  were  drawn  from  the 
following  countries,  fresh  beef  being  converted  into  cattle  as  before: 
From  the  United  States,  234,700  head;  from  Canada,  64,031  head;  from 
all  other  places,  1,269  head. 


12 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


It  thus  appears  that  nearly  one-half  of  all  the  foreign  fresh  beef  con- 
sumed in  the  United  Kingdom  is  drawn  from  the  United  States. 

The  foregoing  estimates  do  not  include  the  imports  of  meat  "  preserved 
otherwise  than  by  salting,"  under  which  designation  considerable  quan- 
tities of  "jerked'7  or  dried  beef  from  South  America,  and  canned  and 
smoked  beef  from  the  United  States  and  Australasia,  are  imported,  as 
witness  the  following  statement : 

Importsinto  the  United  Kingdom  during  Ike  year  1884  of  meat  preserved  other  than  by  salting. 


Whence  imported. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Value  per 
pound. 

Pounds. 
29  098  536 

$3,  476,  642 

Cents. 
11.96 

14,  399,  728 

1,  502,  G97 

10.44 

Belgium                                                                           

1,416,128 

958,  499 

67.76 

2,  614,  970 

403,  385 

15.42 

1,  504,  304 

175,  237 

11.20 

459,  984 

82,  275 

17.89 

245,  392 

61,  893 

25.26 

153,104 

30,  ICO 

39.71 

158,  592 

20,  572 

12.93 

101,300 

20,  363 

20.06 

Hollaud                                                                         

117,  GOO 

20,  052 

17.07 

Brazil  

169,  536 

26,  652 

15.73 

Allother  

10,  640 

1,640 

15.41 

Total  

50,  509,  880 

6,  780,  072 

11.46 

Here,  as  in  cattle  and  fresh  beef,  the  United  States  largely  leads, 
followed  in  quantity  by  Australasia,  Uruguay,  Canada,  Belgium,  &c., 
respectively. 

Assuming  that  the  future  wants  of  Europe  will  increase  proportionately 
with  the  increase  of,  say,  the  last  fifteen  years,  and  that  the  increase  in 
its  cattle,  under  the  most  favorable  conditions,  cannot  be  expected  to 
lieep  pace  with  the  expected  increase  of  population  and  the  constantly 
increasing  use  of  meat  foods  among  the  people — an  increase  principally 
due  to  the  fact  that  the  exports  from  the  United  States  and  other  non- 
European  countries  are  bringing  meat  foods  more  and  more  within  the 
purchasing  power  of  the  general  classes — it  may  serve  a  practical  pur- 
pose for  our  stockmen,  packers,  and  exporters  to  study  the  statistics 
of  the  countries  which  in  the  near  future  will  be  likely  to  compete  with 
American  meats  in  the  British  markets — not  only  in  the  British  markets, 
but  in  those  of  nearly  every  country  in  Europe,  for  it  is  only  a  matter 
of  detail  in  the  perfection  of  the  methods  for  the  preservation  of  fresh 
beef,  and  its  quick  and  regular  transportation  from  distant  countries, 
when  the  breeding  nnd  rearing  of  cattle  for  meat  purposes  will  be 
wholly  unprofitable,  if  not  practically  impossible,  in  the  greater  portion 
of  Europe. 

The  latest  official  returns  and  estimates  of  the  number  of  horned  cat- 
tle in  the  principal  cattle-rearing  countries  outside  of  Europe  give  the 
following  results : 


Countries. 

Total  number 
of  cattle. 

Xumber  to 
every  1,000  in- 
habitants. 

United  States  

45  170  000 

821.  3 

20  000  000 

1  860  7 

jo  000  000 

4  724.0 

8  000  COO 

11  4  '^8  6 

1  925  000 

442.  0 

8  153  000 

2  777  0 

Total  

95  248  000 

1  288  9 

CATTLE   AUD   DAIRY   FARMING.  13 

The  figures  in  this  statement  show  that  there  are  over  3,000,000  more 
horned  cattle  in  the  six  countries  given,  with  a  population  of  about 
76,000,000,  than  there  are  in  the  principal  countries  of  Europe — practi- 
cally the  entire  continent — heretofore  given,  with  a  population  of 
324,000,000. 

In  regard  to  the  vast  herds  of  cattle  in  the  Argentine  Eepublic,  Uru- 
guay, and  Brazil,  it  may  bo  said,  as  a  rule,  that  they  are  at  present  only 
valuable  for  their  hides,  horns,  tallow,  &c.,  very  large  numbers  not 
being  available  even  for  these  products,  owing  to  their  distance  from 
the  seaboard  and  the  lack  of  transportation  facilities.  A  striking  illus- 
tration of  these  conditions  is  given  by  the  consul-general  at  Eio  de 
Janeiro,  who  reports  that,  notwithstanding  the  20,000,000  head  of  cattle 
in  the  Empire,  54,000,000  pounds  of  dried  beef  were  imported  into  that 
city  (during  the  year  in  which  his  report  was  written)  from  Uruguay 
and  the  Argentine  Eepublic.  The  conditions  which  prevail  in  the  Ar- 
gentine Eepublic  are  not  much  better  than  those  which  prevail  in  Brazil, 
Consul  Baker  reporting  that,  with  its  12,000,000  cattle,  neither  milk, 
butter,  nor  cheese  is  produced  in  the  country,  and  that  the  beef  is  of 
execrable  quality. 

Cattle  in  the  Argentine  Eepublic  and  in  Uruguay  are  bred  and 
slaughtered  almost  wholly  for  their  hides,  the  exports  of  which  num- 
bered 1,910,218  for  the  Argentine  Eepublic  alone  in  1883. 

With  the  increasing  demand  for  beef  in  Europe,  it  cannot  be  very 
long  before  the  waste  beef  of  South  America  will  be  more  or  less  util- 
ized in  that  direction.  The  capitalists  of  Europe,  it  appears,  are  already 
contemplating  the  import  of  fresh  meats  from  the  Argentine  Eepublic, 
for  our  consul  at  Mayence,  in  a  report  dated  September  1,  1885,  trans- 
mits the  following  clipping  from  a  leading  German  trade  journal : 

FRESH-MEAT  TRADE   WITH  ARGENTINE. 

The  proposal  to  establish  a  company  to  carry  on  the  importation  of  fresh  moat  from 
Argentine  is  being  taken  up  in  various  quarters.  Hamburg  is  to  be  the  chief  Euro- 
pean depot,  and  3,000,000  marks  (about  $700,000)  are  proposed  as  the  capital.  It  is 
contended  that  there  is  a  great  opening  in  Germany  for  a  concern  which  will  provide 
cheap  food,  and  especially  flesh,  for  the  people.  The  La  Plata  states,  and  Argentine 
particularly,  are  especially  eligible  for  the  supply  of  stock  on  a  large  scale.  A  begin- 
ning is  to  be  made  with  mutton.  In  the  Argentine  Eepublic  alone  the  flocks  of  sheep 
number  80,000,000  head.  The  meat  will  bo  brought  in  cold  apartments,  the  ma- 
chinery for  the  Argentine  refrigerating  establishment  being  obtained  in  Germany. 
German  refrigerating  machines  have  proved  their  efficiency.  Recently  Herr  A.  Neii- 
bccker,  engineer,  of  Offenbach,  made  experiments  attaining  15°  of  cold,  and  after 
six  weeks  the  object  still  showed  8°,  while  for  the  transport  by  ship  1°  is  sufficient. 

The  consul,  in  transmitting  this  "  news  item,"  pertinently  asks  why 
our  people  cannot  supply  some  of  this  "  cheap  food,  especially  flesh,  for 
which  there  is  said  to  be  a  great  opening  in  Germany." 

During  the  year  1884  we  exported  over  120,000,000  pounds  of  frcsli 
beef,  of  which  115,000,000  pounds  went  to  the  United  Kingdom,  and 
not  a  single  pound  to  any  other  country  in  Europe.  This  would  seem 
to  imply  either  one  or  all  of  three  points,  viz,  that  our  exporters  have 
overlooked  the  German  market,  that  our  beef  is  too  dear  for  that  mar- 
ket, or  that  there  is  no  "  great  opening  "  in  that  market  for  foreign  fresh 
beef.  The  second  would  seem  to  be  the  true  point,  else  why  should  a 
syndicate  be  formed  for  experimenting  in  Argentine  beef,  while  Amer- 
ican beef,  beyond  the  experimental  phase,  is  within  easy  reach. 

In  regard  to  Australasia,  noted  for  its  valuable  breeds  of  cattle,  as 
well  as  for  its  intelligent  cattle-breeding,  it  maybe  said  to  hnvo  passed 
the  experimental  stage  in  its  exports  of  fresh  beef  to  the  United  King- 


14  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

dom,  as  the  exports  thereto  of  308,000  pounds  in  1884  would  seem  to 
imply.  The  imports  of  fresh  beef  into  the  United  Kingdom  from  the 
United  States  during  the  year  1875  were  only  a  little  greater  than  those 
for  Australasia  in  1884. 

The  first  imports  into  the  United  Kingdom  of  fresh  beef  from  Kussia 
are  recorded  for  the  year  1883,  viz,  2,462,432  pounds.  For  1884  the  im- 
ports amounted  to  3,351,184  pounds,  an  increase  of  889,752  pounds. 
The  initiatory  effort  in  this  case  is  British — British  capital  and  British 
direction— and  great  hopes  are  entertained  of  enlarging  the  trade. 

It  will  be  noted,  in  the  table  showing  the  imports  of  fresh  beef  into  the 
United  Kingdom,  that  the  Eussiau  product  is  valued  at  9.92  cents  and 
the  American  at  11.80  cents  per  pound.  The  superiority  of  the  Ameri- 
can beef  fully  warrants  this  difference  in  price  ;  but  it  must  not  be  for- 
gotten that  a  penny  per  pound  is  a  matter  of  considerable  moment  to 
the  working  and  trades  classes  of  the  United  Kingdom,  and  will  go  far 
towards  glossing  over  inferiority  in  quality.  This  question  of  cheapness 
exerts  a  controlling  influence  in  every  country  in  Europe,  and  the  country 
which  can  supply  the  cheapest  food  products  can  always  command 
au  almost  unlimited  market  therein.  Oar  producers,  while  maintaining 
the  high  quality  of  their  products,  must  never  lose  sight  of  this  point. 

Assuming  that  in  the  near  future  our  stockmen  and  slaughterers  will 
have  to  contend  more  or  less  with  Australasia,  the  Argentine  Eepublic, 
Russia,  &c. — Canada  being  already  an  important  competitor— for  the 
beef  trade  of  Europe,  the  question  naturally  presents  itself,  how  will 
such  competition  affect  us  ? 

With  the  present  magnificent  condition  of  our  vast  herds ;  their  supe- 
rior quality  as  beef-makers;  the  intelligence  which  governs  and  guides 
every  movement  from  the  plains  to  the  seaboard ;  our  almost  perfect 
railway  system,  which  insures  quick  transport ;  the  nearness  of  Europe 
to  our  shores,  and  the  unlimited  steamship  conveyance  always  available, 
it  does  not  seem  possible  that  any  other'country  can  overmatch  us  in 
the  European  markets.  The  only  drawback  to  our  export  trade  which 
can  arise  is  the  possibility  of  our  home  demands  increasing  faster  than 
our  supply,  for  the  home  market  is  the  controlling  influence.  Whatever 
maybe  the  results  to  us  and  to  the  other  countries  which  are  preparing 
to  enter  into  this  trade,  the  result  to  the  United  Kingdom  must  be  an 
abundant  and  cheap  supply  of  beef,  for  the  surplus  beef  cattle  of  the 
world  are  ever  on  the  move  towards  London. 

DAIRY  PRODUCTS  IN  EUROPE. 

Those  portions  of  the  consular  reports  which  treat  of  dairy  farming  in 
Europe  seem  to  cover  every  point  contemplated  in  the  Department  cir- 
cular, and  they  must  prove  of  great  interest  and  value  to  our  dairy  farm- 
ers. It  would  be  impossible,  even  were  it  necessary,  to  condense  their 
various  interesting  descriptions  of  European  dairy  farming,  from  the 
care  of  the  cattle  to  the  manufacture  of  butter  and  cheese,  and  the  con- 
ditions which  surround  and  influence  the  industry,  from  its  inception  to 
the  disposal  of  the  products.  The  reports  to  be  fully  appreciated  in  this 
regard  must  be  read  in  detail,  for  the  different  parts  of  the  subject  are 
dwelt  on  to  minutia,  leaving  very  little  for  assumptive  speculation. 

The  only  phase  of  the  interest  which  seems  to  demand  any  treatment 
here  is,  as  in  the  case  of  cattle  and  beef,  that  which  deals  with  the 
European  butter  and  cheese  markets,  our  share  therein,  and  how  to  en- 
large that  share. 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


15 


What  was  said  of  the  cattle  surplus  of  the  world  finding  a  market  in 
the  United  Kingdom  is  equally  true  of  butter  and  cheese.  The  condi- 
tions which  govern  that  market  may  therefore  be  said  to  govern  all 
other  markets;  at  least  this  holds  good  so  far  as  our  exports  of  dairy 
products  to  Europe  are  concerned. 

The  following  statement  shows  the  amount  and  value  of  butter  and 
butterine— for,  strange  to  say,  the  British  customs  returns  do  not  distin- 
guish between  butter  and  oleomargarine— imported  into  the  United 
Kingdom  during  the  year  1884 : 

Butter  and  butterine  imports. 


Whence  imported. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Value  per 
pound. 

Pounds. 
124  924  198 

$24  285  575 

Cents. 
19.44 

57  121  008 

14,077,539 

24.64 

37  527  504 

9  761  052 

26  01 

1C  177  280 

4  igQ  251 

25  84 

11  404  064 

2*  887*  384 

25  32 

United  States          .                    

11  231  472 

2  179  982 

19  41 

6*  208*  944 

l'  243*  028 

20  02 

6  740  272 

1  348  848 

20  00 

3*  489*  472 

610  564 

17.51 

1  484  560 

202  536 

13  64 

508  480 

93  924 

18  47 

Italy 

152  43^ 

36*  562 

23  92 

100  464 

25  685 

25  57 

British  East  Indies  

161  168 

25,  146 

15.60 

17  584 

3  115 

17.72 

Total 

277  248  832 

60  961  191 

21  99 

It  will  be  noted  that  Danish  butter  leads  all  foreign  butter  in  price 
per  pound  in  the  British  market,  being  higher  than  even  the  celebrated 
Channel  Islands  butter.  This  is  a  fine  tribute  to  what  may  be  called  a 
national  effort  in  this  leading  industry  of  Denmark,  for  Government  and 
people  seem  to  be  united  in  the  determination  to  combine  all  the  ad- 
vanced appliances  for  the  manufacture  of  this  product  with  the  utmost 
care  and  selection  of  the  stock,  cleanliness,  and  care  in  handling  the 
milk,  cream,  and  butter,  and  putting  the  latter  on  the  British  market 
in  the  most  acceptable  condition.  Next  to  Denmark,  the  products  of 
Germany,  Sweden,  and  France  stand  very  high  in  the  British  market. 

The  comparatively  low  place  occupied  by  the  product  of  Holland 
should  not  detract  from  the  noted  dairy  farmers  of  that  country,  it  be- 
ing wholly  due  to  the  fact  that  a  great  portion  of  the  imports  therefrom 
into  the  United  Kingdom  is  oleomargarine,  or  imitation  butter.  Consul 
Eyder,  in  his  report  on  the  butter  export  of  Denmark,  calls  attention 
to  this  fact,  and  the  Irish  butter-makers,  as  will  be  seen  on  reference 
to  the  report  from  Consul  Piatt,  of  Cork,  protest  that  the  Dutch  manu- 
facture butterine,  or  oleomargarine,  properly  speaking,  to  imitate  Irish 
butter,  in  counterfeit  packages,  and  that  it  is  largely  sold  as  Irish  but- 
ter in  England,  and  even  in  Ireland. 

To  properly  estimate  the  amount  of  this  so-.called  u Dutch  butter77 
imported  into  the  United  Kingdom,  we  have  only  to  compare  the  im- 
ports from  Holland  in  1877,  before  oleomargarine  had  become  an  in- 
dustry in  that  country,  and  the  imports  during  the  year  1884.  In  the 
former  year  the  imports  were  41,679,085  pounds,  against  100,128,032 
pounds  in  1884.  In  the  former  year  the  British  imports  of  French  but- 
ter amounted  to  16,000,000  pounds  more  than  the  imports  of  Dutch  but- 
ter, while  in  1884  Dutch  butter  led  the  French  by  nearly  44,000,000 


16  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

pounds.  It  is,  therefore,  safe  to  assume  that  fully  50,000,000  pounds 
of  the  butter  imported  into  the  United  Kingdom  from  Holland  in  the 
year  1884  was  oleomargarine  or  imitation  butter. 

In  view  of  the  prejudice  which-  exists  in  Europe  against  American 
products,  and  the  belief  which  prevails,  more  or  less,  among  the  several 
peoples  that  adulteration  and  counterfeiting  of  food  products  are  more 
rife  in  the  United  States  than  in  the  Old  World,  the  open  manufacture 
of  oleomargarine  into  imitation  butter,  the  counterfeiting  of  well-known 
brands,  and  the  flooding  the  British  markets  therewith,  without  excit- 
ing any  special  wonder,  is  most  significant.  In  some  the  United  States 
we  have  laws  regulating  the  manufacture  of  oleomargarine,  which  laws 
insist  that  the  product  must  be  plainly  branded  according  to  its  nature, 
so  that  people  who  so  desire  can  purchase  and  use  it  uuderstandingly. 
That  it  is  permitted  to  be  imported  into  the  United  Kingdom  under  the 
name  of  butter,  and  sold  as  such,  must  have  a  very  injurious  effect  on 
the  legitimate  butter  trade. 

Turning  to  our  exports  of  butter  and  oleomargarine  (for  the  distinc- 
tion is  clearly  made  by  our  customs),  we  find  that  during  the  year  1884 
Holland  took  of  our  oleomargarine  oil  33,173,849  pounds,  valued  at 
$4,127,827,  an  average  of  12.44  cents  per  pound.  Our  total  exports  of 
oleomagarine  for  the  year  amounted  to  39,321,000,  valued  at  $4,842,000, 
or  18,693,626,  pounds,'  and  $1,091,229  in  excess  of  our  butter  exports  for 
the  year.  Of  our  exports  of  oleomargarine  not  taken  by  Holland, 
2,865,783  pounds  of  the  oil  went  to  Belgium,  1,967,263  pounds  of  the 
oil  and  421,316  pounds  of  the  imitation  butter  (the  oleomargarine  ex- 
ports being  subdesignated  imitation  butter  and  the  oil  by  our  customs) 
went  to  the  United  Kingdom,  and  1,062,360  pounds  of  tbe  imitation  but- 
ter to  Canada. 

There  need  be  little  doubt  that  the  greater  portion  of  the  export  to 
Holland  was  con  verted  into  "Irish"and  u  English"  butter  and  consumed 
as  such  by  the  British  people.  In  this  connection  it  is  worthy  of  note 
that  the  exports  from  Holland  to  the  United  Kingdom,  of  which  at  least 
one-half  was  composed  of  this  imitation  butter,  are  valued  by  the  Brit- 
ish customs  at  a  fraction  per  pound  more  than  the  real  butter  imported 
from  the  United  States. 

The  decrease  in  the  consumption  of  American  butter  in  the  United 
Kingdom  is  noteworthy.  The  imports  thereof  in  1879  amounted  to 
33,231,472  pounds,  valued  at  $6,041,466,  against  11,231,472  pounds,  val- 
ued at  $2,179,982,  in  1884.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  this  decrease 
was  largely  due  to  the  increase  in  our  home  consumption,  prices  in  the 
home  market,  especially  for  first  quality  butter,  being  more  satisfac- 
tory than  the  prices  prevailing  in  the  United  Kingdom.  The  decrease 
was  certainly  not  due  to  any  lessened  demand  for  foreign  butter  in 
Great  Britain,  for  the  imports  during  the  year  1884  were  15,000,000 
pounds  in  excess  of  those  of  1880 ;  and  the  fact  that  so  much  inferior 
butter  or  substitute  for  butter  finds  a  growing  market  therein  goes  to 
prove  that  quality  has  no  further  bearing  on  the  trade  than  value  in  the 
British  market. 

The  fact  that  American  butter  is  valued  at  6.60  cents  per  pound  less 
than  the  Danish,  6.43  cents  less  than  the  German,  5.91  cents  less  than 
the  Swedish,  5.23  cents  less  than  the  French,  and  even  a  fraction  less 
than  the  Dutch,  one-half  of  which  is  imitation  butter,  should  appeal  to 
the  pride  as  well  as  the  profit  of  our  dairy  farmers.  The  high  position 
attained  by  the  Danish,  German,  and  French  butter  in  the  British  mar- 
ket is  the  result  of  special  preparation  for  that  market,  and  the  reports 
of  the  consuls  from  those  countries  show  the  great  care  taken  in  its 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  17 

manufacture,  so  that  all  the  requisite  conditions  may  be  complied  with. 

It  may  be  said  of  the  British  market  that  it  offers  an  almost  un- 
limited field  for  high  and  low  grades  of  butter.  As  the  Dutch  and.  Bel- 
gians, with  their  imitation  butter — for  the  Belgians,  it  would  also  ap- 
pear, largely  manufacture  oleomargarine  for  export  to  England — will, 
it  is  more  than  likely,  be  able  to  supply  the  low-grade  product,  we  can 
scarcely  hope,  even  if  we  so  desired,  to  compete  for  this  trade.  The 
field  for  high-grade  butter  is,  however,  open  to  our  dairy  people,  and 
there  is  no  good  reason  why  they,  with  more  favorable  primary  condi- 
tions than  can  possibly  exist  in  any  of  the  European  countries,  should 
not  prepare  and  place  upon  the  British  market  butter  which  would 
stand  on  a  par  with  the  best  Danish  product.  They  should  study  the 
reports  on  Danish  dairy  farming  concerning  this  great  industry,  and 
thus  learn  that  the  secret  of  Danish  success  lies  altogether  in  comply- 
ing with  the  laws  governing  success.  If  our  dairy  farmers  essay  foreign 
markets  at  all,  they  should  cater  to  the  tastes  of  those  markets,  and  it 
will  pay  better,  even  at  the  expense  of  more  labor  and  time,  to  export 
first-class  than  inferior  butter  carelessly  made,  carelessly  packed,  and 
carelessly  placed  on  the  markets.  The  11,231,472  pounds  of  American 
butter  imported  into  the  United  Kingdom  from  the  United  States  dur- 
ing the  year  1884  at  the  price  received  for  Danish  butter  would  have 
yielded  our  dairy  farmers  nearly  $750,000  more  than  was  realized  there- 
from. This  large  sum  can  be  legitimately  charged  to  indifference  on 
the  part  of  our  dairy  farmers.  This  is  not  the  real  cost  of  our  indiffer- 
ence, however,  for  had  we  catered  for  the  British  markets,  after  the 
manner  of  the  Danish  dairy  farmers,  our  exports  would  have  been  four- 
fold what  they  were  in  1884.  Thus  some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the 
consequential  damages  which  have  resulted  from  our  rernissness  in  this 
one  industry,  which,  as  said  before,  is  surrounded  by  more  favorable  con- 
ditions in  the  United  States  than  in  any  other  country. 

In  this  connection,  the  attention  of  our  dairy  farmer  is  directed  to 
a  report  on  the  Irish  butter  trade,  transmitted  by  the  consul  at  Cork. 
AF  Cork  is  the  chief  center  of  the  dairy  interest  of  Ireland — the  butter 
being  almost  wholly  manufactured  for  the  London  market — and  as  Irish 
butter  holds  a  very  high  place  in  English  esteem,  this  report,  with  its 
accompanying  papers,  is  of  special  value. 

A  table  in  this  report  gives  the  prices  of  the  finest  butter  in  the  Cork 
market  for  forty  years,  viz,  1841  to  1881,  from  which  it  appears  that 
during  the  decade  ending  with  1851  butter  averaged  84  shillings  per 
hundred- weight  (18.2  cents  per  pound) ;  during  the  decade  ending  with 
1861,  104  shillings  per  hundred- weight  (22.6  cents  per  pound) ;  during 
the  decade  ending  with  1871, 116  shilling  per  hundred- weight  (26  cents 
per  pound) ;  and  during  the  decade  ending  with  1881,  131  shillings  per 
hundred-weight  (27.9  cents  per  pound) ;  an  increase  in  the  forty  years  of 
47  shillings  per  hundred- weight  (10.2  cents  per  pound). 

In  1881  Danish  butter  was  valued  in  the  English  customs  at  26.25 
cents  per  pound;  in  the  same  year,  as  the  report  under  consideration 
shows,  Irish  butter  sold  in  the  Cork  markets  at  28.8  cents  per  pound. 
The  costs  and  charges  incident  to  export  must  be  added  hereto  to  ar- 
rive at  an  estimate  of  its  value  in  the  English  market.  These  figures 
would  go  to  prove  that  Irish  butter  brings  the  highest  price  of  all  for- 
eign butter  in  the  London  market.  One  of  the  inclosures  in  Consul 
Piatt's  report  deals  at  length  with  "Irish  preserved  butter,"  the  writer, 
an  expert  in  this  product,  claiming  for  this  particular  article  great 
keeping  qualities.  • 

H.  Ex.  51 2 


18  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

Consul  Piatt,  in  referring  to  this  butter,  says : 

In  connection  with  the  subject  of  canned  butter,  it  may  be  well  to  direct  the  atten- 
tion of  those  in  the  United  States  interested  herein  to  the  opportunity  which  I  am  told 
exists  for  a  large  development  of  American  enterprise  with  respect  to  this  class  of 
butter.  Within  seven  or  eight  years,  France,  Germany,  and  Denmark  have,  by  the 
adoption  of  the  system  of  packing  butter  in  hermetically  sealed  cans,  each  contain- 
in^  1,  2,  3,  7,  14,  or  24  pounds  of  butter,  secured  the  entire  or  about  the  entire  trade 
of  supplying  the  ships  of  the  world.  I  believe  that  the  American  creamery  butter  is 
eminently  suitable  for  this  particular  branch  of  the  export  butter  trade.  If  this  but- 
ter were  packed  and  sealed  in  cans  similar  to  those  exhibited  by  Mr.  Clanchy,  which 
preserve  the  butter  fresh  and  sweet  for  a  long  period  in  any  climate,  immediately  on 
being  made  at  the  creameries,  nothing,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  is  to  prevent  its  use  in  sup- 
plying the  immense  foreign  shipping  trade  of  our  country.  Whereas,  all  vessels  going 
from  Europe  to  America  take  with  them  a  supply  for  the  double  voyage,  it  would  be 
quite  practicable,  if  this  enterprise  were  introduced  in  the  United  States,  to  secure 
the  entire  trade  for  the  American  exporters.  The  United  States  ought  tobe  able  to  com- 
pete most  successfully  with  Europe  for  this  trade,  inasmuch  as  all  dairy  products  can 
be  produced  so  much  cheaper  with  us  than  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

For  the  large  passenger  steamships  the  finest  butter  is  utilized,  and  also  for  export 
to  countries  where  the  consuming  population  require  and  can  afford  to  pay  for  it, 
such  as  India,  Japan,  China,  Australia,  and  South  America,  and  countries  bordering 
on  the  Mediterranean. 

For  merchant  shipping  and  for  the  poorer  classes  of  the  population  in  the  above- 
named  countries,  a  second  and  third  quality  of  butter  is  good  enough,  and  it  is  for 
the  inferior  qualities  that  the  United  States,  as  would  appear  from  published  market 
reports,  require  a  greater  outlet  than  for  the  products  of  the  best  dairies,  irasinnch 
as  the  American  markets  are  continually  glutted  with  stock  of  this  sort,  chiefly  owing 
to  the  inroads  which  the  improved  manufacture  of  butterine  has  made  upon  the 
markets  hitherto  available  for  the  consumption  of  cheap  genuine  butter.  Since 
merchant  vessels  use  chiefly  butter  of  the  third  quality,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
markets  for  largo  quantities  of  this  class  of  butter  might  be  found  if  the  canning  sys- 
tem were  adopted  for  the  supply  now  furnished,  for  the  most  part,  by  European 
exporters. 

From  a  statement,  herewith  submitted,  showing  our  butter  exports 
for  eleven  years,  1874  to  1884,  both  inclusive,  it  appears  that  this  ex- 
port has  increased  nearly  fivefold  in  quantity  during  that  period.  The 
price  per  pound  was,  however,  nearly  7  cents  greater  in  1874  than  in 
1884.  On  turning  to  the  butter  import  into  the  United  Kingdom  for 
those  two  years  it  is  found  that  the  average  price  per  pound  in  1874  was 
24.24  cents,  and  for  1884  (omitting  the  import  from  Holland  wherein 
imitation  butter  predominated)  the  average  price  was  24.70  cents  per 
pound.  Thus  the  decline  in  value  in  American  butter  during  the 
eleven  years  under  consideration  must  have  been  wholly  due  to  deteri- 
oration in  quality.  In  this  connection  it  should  be  remembered,  how- 
ever, that  our  first-class  butter  finds  as  good  a  market  at  home  as  in  any 
foreign  country,  and  it  may  be  assumed  that  this  fact  alone  accounts 
for  the  decline  in  the  price  of  American  export  butter  in  1884,  as  com- 
pared with  the  year  1874. 

Our  exports  of  butter  to  Europe  during  the  eleven  years  increased 
nearly  ninefold  in  quantity,  this  increase  being  wholly  dominated  by  our 
exports  to  the  United  Kingdom  and  to  Germany. 

The  export  in  1884  of  American  butter  to  Denmark  and  Sweden 
(421,377  and  370,371  pounds  respectively)  is  worthy  of  attention,  being 
our  first  recorded  butter  exports  to  these  countries. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  ascertain  whether  this  product  was  im- 
ported into  those  butter-exporting  countries  for  consumption  or  to  be 
worked  over  for  the  English  market.  As  the  latter  was  more  than 
likely  the  real  purpose  of  import,  it  becomes  a  question  for  our  dairy 
farmers  whether,  if  it  pays  the  Banish  and  Swedish  butter  makers  or 
assorters  to  import  American  butter,  manipulate  it  over  and  re-export 
the  same  fo  England  at  profitable  prices,  it  would  not  pay  them  to  so 


CATTLE   AND-DAIEY   FAHMING. 


19 


manipulate  it  in  the  first  place  as  to  leave  nothing  for  foreign  "  butter 
doctors"  to  realize  from  any  subsequent  handling?  If  our  butter  can 
be  so  manipulated  as  to  sell  in  London  as  Danish  and  Swedish  butter, 
it  must  be,  in  its  finished  state,  as  good  as  Danish  or  Swedish  butter, 
or  the  factors  of  those  countries  would  not  risk  their  good  names  by 
placing  it  before  the  British  public  with  their  brands  thereon.  It  nec- 
essarily follows  that  our  own  dairy  farmers  can  turn  out  our  whole 
product  for  export  of  as  good  quality  as  either  Danish  or  Swedish  but- 
ter, if  they  only  take  the  necessary  time  and  care  in  all  the  details  of 
manufacture. 

It  will  be  seen  that  our  butter  export  to  Canada  (which  is  doubt- 
lessly largely  re-exported  to  Great  Britain),  the  British  West  Indies,  the 
French  possessions  in  America,  the  Spanish  West  Indies,  the  United 
States  of  Colombia,  and  Venezuela,  is  of  considerable  volume  and  value. 
The  fact  that  we  export  about  one-half  as  much  butter  to  countries  on 
this  continent  as  we  do  to  Europe  is  significant,  and  as  this  field  is  capa- 
ble of  being  largely  developed  it  is  worthy  of  the  special  attention  of 
our  dairy  farmers. 

In  this  connection  it  is  to  be  assumed  that  canned  butter,  put  up 
after  the  manner  of  Irish  butter  as  reported  by  our  consul  at  Cork, 
would  be  better  suited  for  the  West  Indian  and  South  American  mar- 
kets than  our  butter  packed  and  shipped  in  its  present  form. 

Our  butter  exports  to  Africa  and  Asia  are,  as  might  be  expected,  of 
little  account.  These  continents  do  not  consume  butler  in  its  American 
and  general  European  form  to  any  appreciable  extent.  To  win  any 
trade  therein  would  require  from  our  dairy  farmers  special  preparation 
and  special  packing.  The  reports  from  these  continents  will  enable 
those  directly  concerned  to  appreciate  the  conditions  which  are  called 
for  in  this  connection. 

THE  FOREIGN  OLEOMAEGrARmE  MARKET. 

Exports  of  oleomargarine  from  the  United  States  during  the  year  1884. 


Exported  to— 

Imitation  butter. 

The  oil. 

Total. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Pounds. 
30,  790 

•$2,G05 

Pounds. 
96,  551 
33  173,819 

$11,  866 
4,  127,  827 
358,  798 
161,  156 
6,  159 
4,  200 
1,  237 

Pounds. 
127,  341 
33,  173,  819 
2,  865,  783 
1,  967,  263 
1,  062,  369 
32,  614 
93,  652 

$14,  471 
4,  127,  827 
358,  973 
209,  020 
113,  334 
4,200 
14,  537 

1,520 
421,  316 
1,  001,  803 

175 

47,  864 
107,  175 

2,  864,  263 
1,  545,  947 
60,  566 
•       32,  614 
11,  399 

Unite*!  Kingdom    

82,  253 

13,  300 

Total 

1,  537,  C82 

171,  119 

37,  785,  159 

4,  671,  243 

39,  322,  841 

4,  842,  362 

Value  per  pound  of  oleomargarine  exported  in  1884. 


Exported  to— 

Imita- 
tion 
butter. 

The  oil. 

Exported  to— 

Imita- 
tion 
butter. 

TheoiL 

Holland  ,  

Cents. 

Cents. 
12.44 

Canada    

Cents. 
10  63 

Cents. 
10.  17 

BoliTiutn        -.  . 

31  51 

12  53 

R  4ft 

J2.30 

11.36 

10.42 

Denmark......  ..............  .. 

16.32 

10.85 

20 


CATTLE    AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


The  foregoing  figures  show  that  our  exports  of  oleomargarine  in  1884 
were  18,695,467  pounds  in  quantity  and  61,091,591  in  value  greater  than 
our  exports  of  butter,  and  at  prices  only  a  little  more  than  one-half  the 
latter. 

THE  FOREIGN  CHEESE  MARKET. 

Our  annual  cheese  export  amounts  to  over  five  and  one-half  times  in 
quantity  and  three  times  in  value  our  butter  export,  the  export  during 
the  year  1884  amounting  to  112,869,575  pounds,  valued  at  $11,663,713. 

The  imports  of  cheese  into  the  United  Kingdom,  which  cover  the 
greater  portion  of  the  surplus  cheese  of  the  several  countries,  were  as 
follows  in  1884: 

!  Imports  of  cheese  into  the  United  Kingdom  during  the  year  1834. 


Imported  from— 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Value  per 
pound. 

Pound*. 

Cents. 

109,  333,  280 

'  2,  353 

11.024 

e~<  931  544 

<  301 

11  021 

c5,  777,  092 

4,  342,  002 

12.  137 

3,  03C,  656 

438,  600 

14.  443 

394  800 

46  248 

11,714 

362,  880 

44,717 

12.  323 

315,056 

3*,  418 

12.  19i 

278,880 

30,  340 

10.883 

11.627 

93,856 

11,255 

11.992 

Total... 

63,168 

15.  400 

215, 839,  5C8     24, 307, 944 


11. 1262 


Considering  the  immense  quantity  of  American  cheese  consumed  in 
the  United  Kingdom — 8,000,000  pounds  at  least  of  the  imports  from 
Canada,  above  recorded,  being  American  cheese  exported  by  and  credited 
in  British  returns  to  the  Dominion — it  maybe  held  that  it  stands  as  well 
in  public  estimation  as  the  product  from  any  other  country,  although 
the  specially  prepared  cheese  of  some  other  countries  bring  higher 
prices  in  the  market.  These  higher  figures,  however,  except  in  the  case 
of  Holland,  cover  only  small  quantities,  comparatively.  It  may  well  be 
questioned  whether  the  cheese  of  any  other  country,  in  quality  and  flavor, 
is  superior  to  American  cheese,  but  the  latter  still  suffers,  in  price  at 
least,  for  it  does  not  seem  to  suffer  in  consumption  from  that  lingering 
prejudice  which  regards  all  American  products  as  in  some  n^sterious 
manner  inferior  to  the  products  of  the  older  countries — a  prejudice 
which  has  operated  very  unfavorably  for  our  products,  but  which  is 
being  dissipated  by  the  continuous  good  qualities  of  the  products  them 
selves. 

It  will  be  seen  that  we  supply  the  British  markets  with  a  little  more 
than  one-half  their  total  imports  of  cheese.  Our  exports  of  cheese  to 
the  United  Kingdom  during  the  year  1884,  102,686,547  pounds,  and 
to  Canada,  8,803,296  pounds — the  greater  portion  of  the  latter  go- 
ing to  England  also— left  only  1,879,632  pounds  for  export  to  all  other 
countries.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  our  foreign  cheese  trade  may  be 
said  to  be  confined  to  the  United  Kingdom.  Of  our  immense  cheese  ex- 
port during  1884,  only  a  little  over  3,000  pounds  went  to  all  Europe,  out- 
aide  the  United  Kingdom, 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  21 

This  branch  of  our  dairy  industry  calls  for  no  farther  comment.  Our 
dairy  farmers  have  only  to  continue  to  supply  the  British  markets,  as 
heretofore,  with  good  cheese,  to  maintain  the  trade  at  its  present  mag- 
niucient  proportions.  It  may  be  time  to  consider,,  in  addition  to  our 
manufacture  of  cheese  for  general  consumption,  whether  it  would  not 
pay  to  cater  to  particular  and  peculiar  taste.  For  instance,  French 
cheese  to  the  amount  of  over  3,000,000  pounds,  valued  at  over  3  cents  per 
pound  more  than  American  cheese,  was  consumed  in  the  United  King- 
dom in  1884,  Even  Dutch  cheese,  imported  to  an  amount  equal  to  one- 
third  of  the  total  imports  of  the  United  States  (35,777,392  pounds),  is  val- 
ued at  more  than  1  cent  per  pound  higher  than  American  cheese  by  the 
British  customs.  Our  cheese  manufacturers  should  study  the  modes 
of  manufacture  in  the  several  countries,  especially  in  France,  Holland, 
Switzerland,  and  Italy,  and  learn  therefrom,  if  there  is  anything  to  be 
learned,  the  secrets  of  special-cheese  making.  The  reports  from  those 
countries  will  be  found  full  and  valuable  aids  to  such  study. 

Our  cheese  manufacturers  should  never  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that 
whenever,  without  any  depreciation  in  the  quality,  they  can  export 
cheese  to  the  United  Kingdom  -at  lower  prices  than  are  obtained  at 
present,  the  result  will  be  an  increase  in  the  consumption  of  this  product. 
Indeed,  it  would  be  hard  to  estimate  the  increased  consumption  of 
American  cheese  which  would  result  from  a  decrease  of  even  a  penny 
per  pound  in  the  United  Kingdom.  Of  course  this  principle  applies 
to  all  other  food  supplies  equally  as  well  as  to  cheese,  and  it  should 
always  be  borne  in  mind  and  worked  up  to  by  our  producers  and  ex- 
porters without  waiting  for  competition  to  reduce  the  price. 

CANNED  AND  SALTED  BEEF,  BEEF  TALLOW,  ETC. 

The  foregoing  statistics,  covering  the  foreign  trade  and  our  present 
and  prospective  share  therein,  in  horned  cattle,  fresh  beef,  butter,  cheese, 
and  oleomargarine,  still  leave  canned  and  salted  beef,  beef  tallow,  and 
condensed  milk  before  the  subject  of  cattle  and  cattle  products,  in  this 
connection,  is  exhausted. 

The  details  of  our  trade  herein  will  be  found  in  the  tabulated  state- 
ments immediately  following  this  letter,  showing  our  total  exports  of 
cattle  and  cattle  products,  by  countries  and  continents,  for  the  year  1884. 

Our  exports  of  canned  beef  for  the  year  1884  amounted  to  $3,173,767, 
of  which  the  United  Kingdom  took  to  the  value  of  $2,542,122,  while  less 
than  $300,000  worth  went  to  the  remainder  of  Europe. 

Our  exports  of  beef  tallow  during  the  year  1884amounted  to  63,091,103 
pounds,  valued  at  $4,793,375.  In  1880  our  exports  of  tallow  amounted 
to  $110,707,027  pounds,  valued  at  $7,689,262.  Of  course  this  showing 
does  not  go  to  prove  any  decrease  in  this  product  during  those  five 
years,  for  it  is  too  apparent  that  beef  tallow  in  our  market  must  keep 
pace  with  the  slaughter  of  cattle,  and  the  latter  having  increased  very 
largely  during  the  years  under  review,  it  follows  that  the  falling  off  in 
our  export  of  the  former  is  wholly  due  to  an  increased  home  consump- 
tion. This  increased  consumption  is  in  the  line  of  oleomargarine  man- 
ufacture, and  our  exports  of  the  latter,  together  with  our  home  con- 
sumption thereof,  will  fully  cover  any  decrease  in  the  export  of  beef 
tallow. 

Of  the  total  tallow  export  of  1884,  57,706,979  pounds,  valued  at 
$4,339,322,  went  to  Europe,  of  which  much  more  than  one-half  went  to 
the  United  Kingdom,  France  (8,514,000  pounds)P  Belgium,  and  Holland 
following  in  their  respective  order. 


22 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


Our  total  exports  of  salted  beef  in  1884  amounted  to  42,379,911  pounds, 
valued  at  $3,202,275,  of  which  31,410,557  pounds,  valued  at  $2,410,557, 
went  to  Europe ;  9,652,709  pounds,  valued  at  $708,934,  to  countries  in 
America;  and  313,200  and.  227,390  pounds  to  Asia  and  Africa,  respect- 
ively. The  United  Kingdom  took  the  principal  portion  of  this  product, 
as  of  all  the  other  cattle  products  reviewed,  oleomargarine  excepted,  no 
less  than  26,831,030  pounds,  valued  at  $2,058,383,  going  thither. 

Our  total  exports  of  cattle  and  cattle  products  during  the  year  1884 
were  as  follows : 


Designation. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Designation. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

190  518 

$17  855  405 

Cheese                  pounds 

11?  869  575 

$11  663  713 

Fresh  bi>ef             pounds 

120  784  CG4 

11,087,331 

Beef  tallow            .  .  do 

63,  091,  103 

4  793,  375 

3  178  767 

39  329  894 

4  842  362 

42  379  911 

3.  202,  275 

Condensed  milk 

203  008 

641  163 

07  758 

Butter                          do 

90  027  374 

3  750*,  771 

Total 

61  544  855 

CATTLE-BREEDINGr  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES. 

As  remarked  at  the  beginning  of  this  letter,  those  portions  of  tho 
consular  reports  which  deal  with  the  many-sided,  and,  it  may  be  added, 
finely-shaded  subject  of  cattle-breeding  in  the  various  countries,  the 
cattle  most  suitable  for  export  to  the  United  States,  the  best  modes 
and  routes  of  imports  hither,  the  various  phases  of  dairy  farming,  &c., 
do  not  adapt  themselves  to  statistical  analyses  in  any  more  condensed 
forms  than  those  given  in  the  various  reports  themselves;  hence,  these 
portions  of  the  general  subject  are  left  untouched. 

As  was  to  be  expected  from  the  nature  of  the  interests  involved  and 
the  conditions  by  which  they  are  surrounded,  many  of  the  consular  re- 
ports treat  of  the  same  breeds  of  cattle,  and  many  seem  to  have  the 
appearance  of  repetition.  Care  has  been  taken,  however,  to  guard 
against  such  repetition,  while,  at  the -same  time,  giving  due  considera- 
tion to  the  efforts  and  labors  of  the  consuls.  Regard  for  consular  efforts 
is,  however,  herein  conserved  by  regard  for  the  general  interests  in- 
volved, for  the  various  reports,  treating  of  the  same  breeds  of  cattle  and 
their  relative  merits,  give  a  many-sided  view  of  the  same  subject,  and 
hence  serve  to  modify  and  correct  each  other ;  for  the  admirers  of  special 
breeds,  without  intending  to  be  partial,  are  sure  to  paint  their  favorites 
in  colors  too  glowing.  Hence  the  wisdom,  as  well  as  utility,  of  giving 
the  reports  in  full,  leaving  the  intelligent  cattle-breeders  of  the  United 
States  to  draw  their  own  conclusions  therefrom. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  parts  of  the  whole  subject  of  cattle-breed- 
ing is  that  relating  to  cross-breeding  and  its  results  in  the  several  coun- 
tries. In  this  connection,  as  well  as  in  helping  to  show  the  modifications 
and  shadiugs  which  change  of  countries,  or  districts  within  countries, 
has  effected  on  what  are  called  pure-bred  cattle  and  on  the  cattle  bred 
from  intermixture  of  the  native  breeds  therewith,  the  illustrations  which 
accompany  the  reports  will  greatly  aid  the  stock-breeders  of  the  United 
States  in  arriving  at  correct  conclusions  and  immediate  results — results 
which,  it  should  be  remembered,  have  been  attained  in  the  Old  World 
only  by  slow,  patient,  and  costly  effort;  indeed,  the  whole  experience 
of  Europe  is  herein  laid  open  to  our  cattlemen  and  dairy  farmers. 

As  there  is  no  portion  of  this  vast  subject  which  has  produced  more 
heated  discussion  and  honest  difference  of  opinion  among  those  directly 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING.  23 

concerned  than  tlie  wisdom  or  otherwise  of  getting  what  some  of  our 
consuls  call "  fancy-stock  crazed/7  and  paying  more  for  a  single  "  blooded" 
animal  than  a  well-stocked  moderate  farm  is  usually  worth,  and  as  many 
of  these  reports,  principally  those*  which  treat  of  the  fine  and  noted 
breeds  in  the  United  Kingdom,  are  undoubtedly  calculated  to  incite 
the  enthusiasm  of  American  cattlemen,  a  paper  from  Consul  Tanner,  of 
Lie'ge,  Belgium,  which  is,  in  part,  an  argument,  supported  by  valuable 
statistics,  against  such  enthusiasm,  and  intended  to  prove  that  our 
farmers  can,  by  selection  and  care,  develop  a  race  of  American  cattle 
equal  to  any  so-called  "blooded  stock,'7  has  been  inserted  as  a  prelude 
to  the  general  reports.  Such  facts  as  that  our  cattle  are  now  the  best 
foreign  cattle  slaughtered  for  the  British  market,  and  the  evidence 
given  before  the  Ontario  agricultural  commission  by  a  leading  cattle 
exporter,  that  the  Western  cattle  of  the  United  States  "  are  far  superior 
to  Canadian  grain-fed  cattle,  there  being  no  comparison  between  them/7 
should  be  remembered  in  this  connection. 

Without  desiring  to  advocate  or  combat  the  views  herein  set  forth, 
feeling  well  assured  that  the  cattle-breeders  of  the  United  States  are 
fully  competent  to  read  and  digest  the  matter  contained  in  these  re- 
ports, I  cannot  help  feeling  that  many  of  the  latter  are  calculated  to 
arouse  a  certain  amount  of  enthusiasm  where  only  the  coolest  calcula- 
tion is  called  for.  In  this  regard  Consul  Tanner's  paper  on  "  Cattle- 
breeding  in  Europe  and  in  the  United  States,"  with  its  mass  of  valuable 
European  opinion,  methods  of  feeding,  breeding  for  show  and  for  sale, 
principally  to  American  cattlemen,  will  at  least  serve  to  moderate  those 
reports  written,  or  incited,  by  breeders  of  "blooded  stock."  who,  natur- 
ally enough,  write  lovingly  of  their  favorites. 

Given  that  full  consideration  and  calm  deliberation  which  American 
cattle-breeders  and  dairy  farmers  are  surely  capable  of  giving  to  such 
a  congenial  subject  as  cattle-breeding  and  dairy-farming,  these  reports, 
together  with  the  statistics  attached  thereto  in  a  supplementary  form, 
contain,  it  is  confidently  believed,  a  mass  of  information  such  as  has 
never  before  been  compiled  and  published  in  any  country,  and  must 
prove  of  great  value  to  the  cattlemen  and  dairy  farmers  of  the  United 
States. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

T.  F.  BAYAED. 

Hon.  JOHN  G.  CARLISLE, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 


24  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Tabulated  statements  accompanying  the  Secretary's  letter. 

Cattle  statistics : 

(1)  Statement  showing  the  exports  of  cattle  from  the  United  States  during  the 
eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1884,  showing  the  numbers  and  total  value 
and  the  value  per  head  of  the  cattle  exported  to  each  country. 

(2)  Statement  showing  the  imports  of  cattle  into  the  United  Kingdom  during  the 
eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1834,  showing  the  number  and  total  value 
and  the  value  per  head  of  the  cattle  imported  from  each  country. 

Fresh  beef  statistics : 

(3)  Statement  showing  the  exports  of  fresh  beef  from  the  United  States  from  the 
year  1877  (the  first  officially  recorded  year  of  its  export)  to  and  including  the 
year  1884,  showing  the  quantity  and  total  value  and  the  value  per  pound  of 
the  exports  to  each  country. 

(4)  Statement  showing  the  imports  of  fresh  beef  into  the  United  Kingdom  during 
the  eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1884,  showing  the  quantity  and  total 
value  and  the  value  per  pound  of  the  imports  from  each  country. 

Butter  statistics : 

(5)  Statement  showing  the  exports  of  butter  from  the  United  States  during  the 
eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1884,  showing  the  quantity  and  value  of 
the  exports  to  each  continent  and  country  therein. 

(6)  Statement  showing  the  imports  of  butter  and  oleomargarine  into  the  United 
Kingdom  during  the  eleven   years  ending  with  the  year  1884,  showing  the 
quantity  and  total  value  a  nd  value  per  pound  of  the  imports  from  each 
country. 

Cheese  statistics : 

(7)  Statement  showing  the  exports  of  cheese  from  the  United  States  during  the 
eleven  years  ending  witli  the  year  1884,  showing  the  quantity  and  value  of 
the  exports  to  each  continent  and  country  therein. 

(8)  Statement  showing  the  imports  of  cheese  into  the  United  Kingdom  during 
the  eleven  years  ending  with  the  year  1884,  showing  the  quantity  and  total 
value  and  the  value  per  pound  of  the  imports  from  each  country. 

General  statistics : 

(9)  Statement  showing  the  exports  from  the  United  States  of  cattle  and  cattle 
products— horned  cattle,  fresh  beef,  canned   beef,  salted  beef,  other  beef, 
butter,  cheese,  beef  tallow,  and  oleomargarine— during  the  year  1884,  show- 
ing the  number,  quantity,  and  value  of  the  several  products  exported  to 
each  country. 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


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34 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


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H                           ti                       ft 

CATTLE-BREEDING  IN  EUROPE  AND  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  TANNER,.  OF  LIEGE,  BELGIUM. 

It  is  ray  opiDion  that  if  a  fair  test  were  made  of  the  merits  of  cattle 
but  little  known,  including  the  Belgian  breeds,  it  would  be  discovered 
that  the  "craze"  for  so-called  blooded  breeds  is  a  great  mistake,  and 
that  Americans  pay  enormous  and  absurd  prices  for  foreign  cattle. 
These  things,  it  is  to  be  hoped,  will  be  rectified  by  the  reports  in  answer 
to  the  cattle  circular. 

I  believe  that  if  our  people  at  home  would  use  the  money  spent  in 
the  purchase  of  foreign  breeding  cattle  in  constructing  quarters  for  our 
native  cattle  equal  to  the  housing  quarters  of  Europe;  if  they  would 
give  the  native  cattle  the  same  care  they  give  to  their  high-priced  foreign 
cattle,  that  within  four  generations  of  careful  breeding,  always  select- 
ing the  best  bulls  and  the  best  cows  and  keeping  the  others  thinned 
out  by  the  butchers,  the  United  States  would  have  a  native  breed  that 
would  rival  any  cattle  in  the  world. 

If  those  who  pay  extravagant  prices  for  foreign  cattle  will  carefully 
note  what  it  costs  to  feed  and  keep  such  cattle  in  good  condition ;  the 
risks  and  losses  in  transportation  ;  will  keep  a  careful  record  of  their 
milk-yield  in  comparison  with  the  best  of  our  native  breeds,  giving  both 
the  same  care  and  attention,  and  add  up  their  accounts  at  the  end  of 
the  year,  bearing  in  mind  the  interest  on  the  money  invested  in  the 
foreign  stock,  they  will  find  the  balance  on  the  side  of  the  native  cattle. 

In  cattle  the  rule  of  the  "  survival  of  the  fittest"  should  be  adopted. 
An  inferior  cow  should  be  sent  to  the  butcher  as  speedily  as  possible. 

If  the  assertion  of  the  Dutch  historian  be  true  that  William,  Prince 
of  Orange,  found  that  the  cattle  of  England  were  inferior  to  those  of 
Holland,  it  shows  that  the  improvement  in  British  cattle  is  of  recent 
date. 

I  might  offer  a  hundred  illustrations  from  my  own  observations  and 
experience,  which  would  fortify  the  assertion  that  our  native  cattle  can 
be  brought  to  a  degree  of  perfection  existing  in  the  cattle  of  European 
countries  if  they  will  be  surrounded  by  similar  conditions. 

My  brother  took  much  interest  in  matters  of  this  kind,  and  made 
many  experiments.  The  results  of  twelve  years  of  careful  selection  of 
the  best  native  cows  and  bulls  proved  that  there  was  only  a  slight  dif- 
ference between  these  and  the  fancy  imported  cattle,  and  when  the 
difference  in  price  was  taken  into  account  the  balance  was  in  favor  of 
the  home  breeds. 

The  first  Jockey  Club  that  was  ever  inaugurated  was  gotten  up  by 
the  father  of  Senator  Wade  Hampton,  of  South  Carolina.  What  has 
this  Jockey  Club  not  done  for  the  American  race  and  trotting  horse? 
It  has  not  only  elevated  the  standard  of  this  breed  of  horses  by  offer- 
ing sufficient  inducement  to  that  end  in  the  United  States,  but  it  has 
done  the  same  in  European  countries  which  have  followed  the  example 
of  South  Carolina.  It  has  greatly  increased  the  speed  in  running  in 

41 


42  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

the  one.  and  it  has  made  the  trotting  horse,  which  is  peculiar  to  the 
United  States,  almost  equal  to  what  the  running  horse  was  prior  to  the 
formation  of  this  Jockey  Club.  This  only  applies  as  an  illustration  for 
the  subject  on  hand  thus  far.  The  race  horse,  it  is  true,  comes  from  a 
foreign  breed,  but  the  trotting  horse  has  been  developed  therefrom  by 
selection  and  careful  breeding.  This  shows  that  where  man  bends  his 
energies  to  the  development  of  cattle  for  any  particular  quality  he  is 
sure  to  succeed.  With  similar  rules  applied  in  the  breeding  of  even 
our  scrub  cattle,  I  know  whereof  I  speak  when  I  assert  that  they  will 
develop  qualities,  as  beef  and  milk  yielders,  equal  to  those  possessed 
by  the  imported  stock. 

CARE  OF  CATTLE  IN  EUROPE  AND  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

As  a  whole  the  European  people  take  more  interest  in  their  stock 
than  do  the  people  of  the  United  States,  and  there  are  more  induce- 
ments in  this  regard  offered  in  the  former  than  in  the  latter.  The 
English  hold  a  dozen  agricultural  or  cattle  shows  to  our  one,  offering 
thousands  of  dollars  to  our  half  dollars  in  premiums,  and  it  is  no  marvel 
that  the  cattle  are  far  superior,  that  the  farmer  in  England  should 
draw  closer  to  his  cattle  than  does  the  American  farmer  to  his,  treat 
them  kindlier,  and  give  them  better  dispositions. 

Stock-raising,  by  common  consent,  seems  to  have  fallen  to  the  lot  of 
the  farmer,  whereas  it  should  be  a  special  calling;  for  if  it  is  not  an  in- 
terest of  importance  enough  for  the  exercise  of  special  talents,  it  certainly 
posseses  so  many  phases  that  some  of  them  suffer  from  the  divided  at- 
tention which  the  farmer  is  compelled  to  give  his  other  interests.  The 
size  and  betterment  generally  of  a  grain  of  corn  might  be  much  increased 
if  the  farmer  would  make  corn  a  specialty,  and  thoroughly  understood 
the  subject  of  corn-growing  in  all  its  bearings.  In  having  so  many  in- 
terests on  his  hands  one  or  all  of  them  must  suffer. 

It  is  a  well-recognized  fact  in  Belgium,  and  in  Europe  generally,  where 
interest  of  the  keenest  kind  is  taken  in  cattle,  that  there  is  nothing  so 
injurious  to  a  cow  giving  milk  as  to  run  her,  or  excite  her  in  any  manner, 
and  yet  how  frequently  are  reckless  boys,  with  their  dogs  and  whips, 
sent  to  drive  the  cattle  home  in  the  United  States. 

These  things,  and  hundreds  of  others  equally  important,  never  trouble 
the  brains  of  the  American  farmer,  because  his  head  is  full  of  other  mat- 
ters connected  with  his  calling.  How  many  farmers  in  the  United  States 
can  tell  how  much  hay,  or  other  food,  is  given  to  each  cow  during  the 
year  and  the  cost  of  the  same,  and  the  return  therefor  in  milk,  butter, 
and  cheese — in  fine,  does  he  know  if  each  cow  is  paying  for  her  outlay, 
and  if  so,  how  much  ?  Perhaps  a  small  number  could  intelligently  an- 
swer these  questions.  It  is  entirely  different  in  England  and  on  the  Gon- 
tinent.  There  and  here  a  farmer  knows  his  cows  as  well  as  if  they  were 
a  portion  of  his  family.  Rebalances  his  accounts  regularly  and  knows, 
at  all  times,  how  much  he  is  losing  or  gaining  by  each  cow.  He  can  tell 
you  the  food  best  adapted  to  each  cow's  taste,  and  which  will  contribute 
most  to  her  milk  yield. 

He  knows  her  exact  age,  knows  when  it  is  best  for  her  to  breed,  and, 
above  all,  the  care  and  attention  she  demands  at  his  hands,  and  he 
gives  it  to  her,  knowing,  as  he  does,  that  by  so  doing  she  will  return  all 
a  hundred-fold  to  him  in  the  shape  of  milk.  Milk  is  the  first  and  chief 
aim  and  end  of  a  cow's  subsistence,  and  beef  the  last.  If  she  receives  the 
best  nourishing  food,  is  not  exercised  too  violently,  and  is  properly 
cared  for,  she  will  yield  a  rich  supply  of  milk  for  a  half  a  dozen  years  or 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING.  43 

a  little  more,  and  then  leave  a  fine  carcass  for  the  butcher.  She  should 
give  GOO  gallons  of  milk  per  annum,  and  she  will  do  it  if  we  will  do  our 
part  towards  making  her  do  it.  For  the  600  gallons  of  milk  that  she 
gives  us,  care  and  attention  are  all  she  asks  from.  us.  This  is  not  only 
true  of  one  race  of  cows,  but  it  is  true  of  all,  the  scrub  as  well  as  the 
finest.  This  is  what  the  English  have  long  since  realized,  and  this  is 
the  history  of  the  fine  breeds  of  cattle  in  Europe.  They  are  fine  because 
they  have  been  bred  up  to  it  by  care  and  kindness. 

The  American  who  comes  to  Europe  and  pays  $10,000  or  $15,000  for 
a  bull  or  cow  may  be  truly  considered,  as  he  is  in  England,  as  hav- 
ing u  the  American  craze  lor  English  cattle."  The  question  of  breed 
is  a  rational  one,  but  why  should  he  want  to  pay  such  extravagant 
prices  to  England  for  doing  that  which  he  can  do  himself?  The  his- 
tory of  all  breeds  of  cattle,  sheep,  horses,  mules,  dogs,  and  cats  show 
this.  The  breeding  of  stock  not  only  pays  well,  but  it  is  a  business  of 
absorbing  interest.  A  farmer  should  have  an  eye  single  to  these  quali- 
ties in  his  cattle,  the  calf,  the  milk,  and  the  beef,  each  of  which  has  a 
high  value  of  its  own,  and  each  can  be  developed  in  exact  proportion  to 
a  man's  efforts  to  develop  them.  Those  who  develop  the  greater  num- 
ber of  these  requisites  to  the  highest  degree  of  perfection  will  be  those 
who  succeed,  best  with  breed,  with  milk,  with  beef,  and  in  a  pecuniary 
point  of  view.  Care  and  attention  are  the  foundation  of  success,  and 
thereupon  is  laid  the  superstructure  of  the  requisites  mentioned,  a  super- 
structure which  is  perennially  repeating  itself,  improving  or  deteriorat- 
ing as  the  foundation  is  kept  in  repair,  is  strengthened  and  improved. 

Few  farmers  in  America  are  there  who  have  a  genius  or  even  taste 
for  selection  and  classification  of  animals,  but  at  the  same  time  by  draw- 
ing nearer  their  cattle,  and  observing  them  closely,  and  studying  their 
wants,  it  would  be  strange  indeed  if  a  marked  change  for  the  better 
were  not  soon  perceived  in  our  own  home  breeds  without  dashing 
them  with  foreign  stock.  With  the  care  and  attention  given  to  cattle 
in  England  and  on  the  Continent,  compared  with  the  slip-shod  manner 
of  treating  them  in  the  United  States,  it  is  in  no  way  strange  that  there 
should  be  the  difference  that  is  so  palpable.  With  the  personal  atten- 
tion, feed,  &c.,  in  Belgium  a  cow  will  cost  her  owner  at  least  $108  per 
year.  If  she  gives  six  hundred  gallons  of  milk  in  that  time  she  pays 
for  her  maintenance  and  attention  many  times,  and  most  of  the  cows 
here  do  it.  If  you  were  to  tell  an  American  farmer  that  he  must  spend 
$108  per  year  on  his  cow  he  would  want  to  consign  you  to  a  lunatic  asy- 
lum at  once. 

THE  COST  OF  PRODUCING  FINE  CATTLE  IN  ENGLAND. 

The  following  will  give  an  idea  of  what  it  costs  in  England  to  have 
fine  cattle.  I  quote  from  the  Farmers'  (London)  Journal : 

The  cows  are  kept  under  cover  for  about  six  months,  and  are  tied  up  in  pairs,  40  in 
one  house  and  about  ten  in  another.  The  urine  runs  into  a  large  underground  tank, 
from  which,  when  full,  it  is  carried  on  to  the  pasture  by  a  water-cart.  The  food  of 
the  cows  varies  with  their  condition,  and  the  more  milk  they  are  giving  the  higher 
they  are  fed  ;  but  when  dry,  or  nearly  so,  they  have  only  roots  and  hay  or  straw,  un- 
less it  is  decided  not  to  keep  them  for  the  purposes  of  the  dairy,  in  which  case  they 
are  milked  and  fattened  at  the  same  time.  When  fat  they  sell  for  about  $150.  The 
following  is  the  amount  of  food,  in  tons,  consumed  by  the  cows  while  in  the  stalls : 

Cotton  cake 13 

Barleymeal - 11$ 

Bran 7 10J 

Chaff  (i  hay,  f  straw) C 70 

Mangels,  pulped 224 


44  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

In  addition  to  this,  13  tons  of  cotton  cako  are  used  during  tlie  summer.  It  is  some- 
what difficult  to  estimate  the  number  of  acres  of  pasture  used  by  this  herd,  as  th^  cows 
have  the  first  run  of  the  grass,  and  the  coarser  and  rougher  part  of  the  pasture  is  fed 
by  other  stock.  Possibly  each  cow  may  consume  the  produce  of  1|  acres. 

In  the  winter  months  the  milk  sells  for  about  22  cents  per  gallon,  a  price  which  is 
hardly  more  than  sufficient  to  cover  the  cost  of  the  food  and  attendance,  so  that  the 
dairy  does  not  often  get  back  more  than  the  manure  tree  of  cost.  The  annual  expense 
of  labor  upon  each  cow  amounts  to  about  £2  15s. 

The  following  are  the  prices  of  some  of  the  foods  enumerated  above : 

QUOTATIONS. 

£    8.     d. 

Pho3nix  pure  linseed  cake,  per  ton 9  10    0 

Phoenix  pnre  tmdecorticated  cotton-cake  (future  delivery),  per  ton 6    5    0 

Yellow  rape  cake,  per  ton , 6  10    0 

Phoenix  pure  linseed  nieal  (in  bags),  per  ton 10    5    0 

Phoenix  pure  cotton-seed  meal,  per  ton 

Yellow  rape  meal  or  nuts,  per  ton 750 

Phoenix  pure  palm  -nut  meal,  per  ton  „. 700 

Decorticated  cotton-cake,  per  ton 6  17    6 

Decorticated  cotton  meal ,  per  ton 7  10    0 

Clean  sieved  linseed,  suitable  for  feeding  purposes,  per  416  pounds  m  bags.  0  52    0 

Per  ton. 

Linseed  cake:                                                                                          &   B.    d.  £    e.   d. 

Best  quality,  English 810    0  to  8  15    0 

Americanthin 8    00  8  10    0 

Other  qualities  English 8    50  8  10    0 

American 715    0  800 

Marseilles 712    6  7  15    0 

Rape  cake,  East  India  seed 515    0  600 

other  descriptions 0    00  000 

Cotton  cake,  best  London  undecorticated 512    6  600 

Cotton  cake,  decorticated 0    00  000 

Corn  and  mixed  cake,  English  make 710    0  810    0 

Palm-nut  meal 510    0  600 

Locustbeans 5    50  600 

Rice  schudes,  whole 210    0  300 

ground 310    0  4  10    0 

A  little  addition  here  on  the  part  of  the  American  farmer  will  open 
his  eyes  to  many  very  startling  things.  It  will  show  him  that  a  cow  in 
England  gives  a  large  and  rich  quantity  of  milk,  but  it  shows  also  that 
she  would  not  be  a  paying  institution  for  the  American.  The  example 
given  above  will  have  to  be  taken  as  an  illustration,  though  in  my  opin- 
ion many  breeders  of  fine  cattle  feed  much  higher  than  those  above 
mentioned.  The  following,  taken  from  the  same  journal,  will  bear  me 
out  in  this : 

Mr.  R.  E.  Turnbull,  of  Twyer'sWood  Farm,  Hedon,  Hull,  who  has  gained  the  royal 
prize  for  haying  the  best-managed  dairy  farm  in  Yorkshire,  although  having  good 
pastures,  which  produce  a  high  quality  herbage,  invariably  supplements  it  with  artifi- 
cial food.  Now,  as  the  generality  of  dairy  farmers  on  even  comparatively  poor  pas- 
tures do  nothing  of  the  kind,  the  fact  appears  worth  knowing  that  Mr.  Turubull  con- 
linseed 

/according  to 

size  and  age,  while  in  July  they  have  green  tares  and  in  August  and  September  cab- 
bages in  addition.  Of  course  during  winter  the  allowance  to  cows  and  heifers  yield- 
ing milk  is  still  greater,  comprising  for  cows  3  pounds  of  linseed  cako  and  some  3-j-  to 
7  pounds  each  of  crushed  oats  per  day ;  and  heifers  5  pounds  each  either  of  oil-cake — 
one-half  linseed,  the  other  half  cotton — or  equal  proportions  of  liuseed  cake  and 
crushed  oats.  The  other  winter  food  consists  of  pulped  roots  and  hay  partly  chaffed, 
or  when  oat  straw  is  good  it  is  used  as  a  substitute  for  hay,  10  pounds  of  oat  straw 
being  considered  an  equivalent  for  7  pounds  of  hay.  Mr.  Turnbull  makes  a  good  price 
for  his  milkjDaftly  by  retail  sale  in  Hull  and  partly  by  conversion  to  high-class  butter, 
Which  sells  for  1*.  7d.  per  pound,  and  ho  calculates  that  he  realizes  10<i.  per  gallon  for 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  45 


all  his  milk  to  whichever  purpose  applied.      His  summer  average  in  quantity 
quarts  per  cow  and  in  winter  8  quarts  per  cow  per  day. 

Probably  the  publication  of  facts  in  relation  to  the  management  on  this  farm  will 
lead  to  the  conviction  being  entertained  that  dairy  farinevs  in  general  do  not  feed  high 
enough.  This  is  especially  true  of  those  who  convert  their  milk  to  butter.  Their 
profits  thoroughly  depend  on  the  high  quality,  not  quantity,  ofthemilk  —  the  large  propor- 
tion and  thickness  of  the  cream.  Consequently  the  addition  of  Bomo  oil-cake  or  maize 
meal  to  the  ordinary  food  would  be  almost  sure  to  pay,  yet  it  is  undeniable  that  on 
wretchedly  poor  pastures  milch  cows  are  seldom,  in  ordinary  farming,  allowed  cotton 
cake,  maize  meal,  or  anything  else  supplementary,  although  the  milk  they  yield  is 
appropriated  to  butter-making.  A  farmer  of  the  advanced  school  said  a  little  time 
since,  "  I  cannot  aiford  to  let  my  cows  which  yield  milk  feed  on  grass  alone,"  utter- 
ing these  words  because  he  saw  that  parsimony  in  their  feeding  would  be  the  greatest 
possible  extravagance.  A  similar  rule  applies  almost  throughout  the  entire  domain 
of  farm  husbandry,  for  not  only  the  most  liberal  feeding,  but  bountiful  manuring  and 
highest  management,  will  bo  found  in  moat  cases  to  be  attended  with  the  greatest 
economy. 

This  feeding  I  have  no  doubt  will  astonish  the  American  farmer,.but 
it  has  made  the  English  cattle  "  -blooded  cattle."  The  following,  relat- 
ing to  the  same  subject,  will  further  demonstrate  the  importance  of  this 
subject.  It  admits  the  Americans  who  are  in  search  of  English  catttle 
behind  the  scenes,  as  it  were. 

A  CAUTION  TO  GALLOWAY  BREEDERS. 

Galloway  breeders  have  special  reasons  at  the  present  time  why  they  should  be 
careful  to  leave  uncastrated  only  such  beasts  as  will  do  credit  to  the  breed.  While 
some  American  stockmen  have  begun  to  purchase  Galloways  on  the  well-founded  idea 
that  they  aro  especially  adapted  to  their  severe  and  variable  climate,  yet  the  reputa- 
tion of  the  breed  as  a  beef-producing  race  of  cattle  has  yet  to  be  fairly  and  widely  es- 
tablished on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic.  In  many  instances  owners  of  ranches  are 
only  making  inquiries  regard  ing  them,  and  if  inferior  specimens,  especially  bulls,  are 
exported,  the  ultimate  success  of  the  breed  will  be  seriously  inj  ured  thereby.  They  wil  I 
be  judged  by  the  samples  that  aro  sent  out,  and  if  these  compare  unfavorably  with 
the  Shorthorns,  Herefords,  Polled  Angus,  and  other  varieties  with  which  they  are  al- 
ready acquainted  to  some  extent,  the  reputation  of  the  Galloways  will  suffer  in  a  pro- 
portionate degree.  Let  owners  of  herds  retain  as  bulls  only  those  calves  whose  per- 
sonal merit  is  good.  Apart  from  the  question  of  personal  merit,  if  too  many  aro  kept 
the  market  will  bo  overstocked  and  prices  will  be  affected  thereby.  When  once  the 
reputation  of  the  breed  has  been  firmly  established  in  the  Western  States,  it  will  be 
impossible  to  produce  too  many,  provided  they  are  personally  of  sufficient  merit,  for 
the  plains  to  be  stocked  are  practically  illimitable.  But  in  the  mean  time  this  state 
of  matters  has  not  yet  been  reached. 

Moreover,  breeders  of  pedigree  Galloways  must  make  up  their  minds  to  feed  their 
young  cattle  much  more  liberally  than  most  of  them  have  been  in  the  habit  of  doing. 
And  this  remark  applies  to  heifers  as  much  as,  if  not  even  more  so  than,  to  bulls.  In 
regard  to  the  latter,  it  has  long  been  known  that  if  calves  were  not  extra  well  kept 
they  would  not  be  fit  for  service  when  yearlings,  and  hence,  not  being  marketable  at 
that  age,  a  whole  year's  keep  of  them  was  lost.  This  fact  insured  bull  calves  being 
fed  liberally  in  almost  "every  instance.  But,  with  comparatively  few  exceptions,  heif- 
ers have  been  very  sparingly  fed.  It  has  not  been  customary  to  have  Galloway 
heifers  dropping  their  calves  until  they  aro  three  years  of  ago,  and  this  has  afforded 
ample  time  to  bring  them  to  maturity  by  slow  degrees.  But  the  circumstances  are 
now  entirely  different.  Breeders  of  pedigree  Galloways  must  look  to  the  American 
market  for  purchasers.  It  is  not  probable  that  American  stockmen  will  put  Galloway 
heifers  to  breeding  purposes  at  an  earlier  age  than  is  done  in  this  country,  but  it  innsfc 
bo  borne  in  mind  that  when  our  Blackskins  are  taken  to  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic 
they  aro  put  alongside  of  animals  of  other  beef-producing  breeds  of  the  same  age,  and 
if  they  are  not  as  well  grown  and  as  forward  generally  as  these,  their  reputation  can- 
not but  suffer  in  a  corresponding  degree. 

The  breeds  with  which  they  are  brought  into  comparison  in  thia  way  are  the  short- 
horn, the  Hereford,  and  the  Polled  Angus.  Every  one  of  these  has  been  liberally 
fed,  and  even  pampered,  and  therefore  it  is  a  severe  ordeal  to  which  the  Galloways 
have  to  bo  subjected  in  this  respect.  If,  therefore,  the  breeders  of  the  south  coun- 
try Blackskins  are  to  do  justice  to  their  favorites,  and,  indeed,  if  they  are  to  be  true 
to  their  own  interests,  they  must  adopt  a  much  more  liberal  system  of  feeding,  and 
that,  too,  from  the  very  first,  than  has  hitherto  been  customary  among  the  rank  and 


4:6  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

file  of  them.  We  do  not,  indeed,  advocate  any  measure  of  pampering,  which  might 
make  the  beasts  more  tender,  and  lessen  that  hardiness  which  has  been  one  of  their 
most  valuable  characteristics  from  timo  immemorial.  But  there  is  a  moderate  degree 
of  steady  good  keeping  which  is  quite  compatible  with  the  safe  preservation  of  all 
the  distinctive  and  valuable  characteristics  of  the  breed,  and  it  is  this  systematic  lib- 
eral feeding,  even  from  calf  hood,  which  we  advocate.  Quality,  of  course,  is  important 
and  desirable,  but  the  American  purchasers  put  great  stress  upon  size,  and  this  can- 
not be  attained  without  a  steady  liberal  diet.— Dumfries  (Scotland)  Courier. 

As  I  consider  this  subject  one  of  first  importance  to  the  American 
stock-raiser,  I  feel  that  it  cannot  be  pursued  too  far. 

FEEDING-STUFFS. 

This  was  the  subject  of  a  very  instructive  lecture  delivered  in  the  Guild  Hall,  on 
Friday  week,  by  Dr.  Macadam,  Edinburgh,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Strathearn  Cen- 
tral Agricultural  Society. 

Dr.  Macadam  remarked  that  the  food  of  the  animal  had  three  functions  to  fulfill. 
First,  to  supply  combustible  matter  or  fuel  to  be  burned  within  the  living  organism, 
and  thus  keep  up  the  animal  warmth ;  secondly,  to  replenish  the  wear  and  tear  of  flesh 
aronis ;  and,  thirdly,  to  contribute  extra  fatty  matter  and  flesh  atoms  to  be  stored  up 
in  the  animal  structure  so  as  to  increase  the  build  and  weight  of  the  animal.  Be- 
sides these,  there  are  the  elements  of  bone  matter  and  other  saline  substances.  The 
main  natural  feeding-stuff  must  always  be  ordinary  pasture,  and  the  experience  of 
every  agriculturist  points  to  a  decided  difference  in  the  nourishing  properties  of  the 
pasture  of  one  field  or  district  as  compared  with  that  of  another.  This  difference  is 
duo  to  the  varying  proportion  of  water  present.  In  natural  grass  the  water  present 
ranges  from  70  to  90  per  cent.  The  best  grass  in  ordinary  dry  seams  or  dry  soil  con- 
tains about  70  per  cent.,  whilst,  in  rainy  seams  or  damp  soils  the  water  is  increased  to 
80  per  cent. ;  and  in  the  produce  of  irrigated  field  pastures  the  water  runs  as  high  as 
90  per  cent,  of  the  weight  of  the  succulent  grass.  Consequently,  it  follows  that  of 
every  10  pounds  of  grass  from  7  to  9  pounds  consist  of  water,  and  in  the  average  only 
one-fifth  of  the  total  weight  consists  of  dry  feeding  material.  When  the  grass  is  air- 
dried  and  becomes  hay,  the  proportion  of  moisture  is  reduced  to  about  16  per  cent., 
BO  that  only  one-sixth  of  hay  consists  of  water,  and  1  ton  of  hay  contains  the  solid, 
dry,  nourishing  elements  of  fully  4  tons  of  ordinary  pasture  grass.  Turnips  contain 
even  a  larger  average  proportion  of  water,  for  90  per  cent,  of  ordinary  turnips  consist 
of  water ;  so  that  in  every  10  pounds  of  turnip  there  is  only  1  pound  of  dry  feeding- 
stuff.  Potatoes  contain  75  per  cent,  of  water,  being  equal  to  three-fourths  of  their 
entire  weight.  The  cereals  contain  much  less  water,  the  average  proportion  in  wheat, 
oats,  &c.,  being  15  per  cent.,  or  less  than  one-sixth  of  their  whole  weight;  so  that 
five-sixths  consist  of  dry  feeding  material.  In  linseed-cake  and  other  cakes  the  moist- 
ure averages  12  per  cent.,  so  that  one-eighth  of  the  weight  only  consists  of  water, 
and  seven-eighths  of  dry  feeding-stuff.  Considering,  therefore,  the  question  of  food 
thereby  in  the  light  of  the  relative  amount  of  dry  solid  matter  in  a  given  weight  of 
the  respective  articles  consumed  by  the  animal,  it  follows  that  to  obtain  sufficient  dry 
solid  food  the  animal  may  partake  of  1  pound  2  ounces  of  feeding-cake ;  1  pound 3 
ounces  of  cereals  or  air-dried  hay ;  4  pounds  of  potatoes ;  5  pounds  of  ordinary  dry 
pasture ;  10  pounds  of  succulent  grass  from  irrigated  fields,  and  10  pounds  of  turnips. 
When  the  respective  qualities  of  dry  feeding  materials  are  considered,  the  nourishing 
properties  of  the  natural  and  artificial  feeding-stuffs  vary  even  in  a  greater  ratio  than 
the  percentage  of  moisture.  Thus  the  proportion  of  flesh-forming  or  albuminous  mat- , 
ters  present  in  ordinary  grass  and  clover  averaged  2£  to  3  per  cent. ;  in  hay,  10  to  12 
per  cent.;  in  oats,  16  per  cent. ;  in  beans,  20  per  cent. ;  in  potatoes,  2£  per  cent. ;  in 
turnips,  three-fourths  per  cent. ;  and  in  linseed  and  rape  cakes,  25  per  cent.  It  fol- 
lowed, therefore,  that  in  1  ton  of  cake  there  was  as  much  flesh-forming  matter  as  in 
1-J  tons  of  oats,  or  2J  tons  of  hay,  or  8  tons  of  ordinary  pasture,  or  11  tons  of  potatoes, 
or  33  tons  of  turnips;  and  an  ox  or  sheep  would  require  to  consume  these  respective 
quantities  of  the  feeding-stuffs  in  order  to  obtain  a  similar  amount  of  flesh-forming  or 
albuminous  matter.  At  the  same  time,  however,  it  might  be  remembered  that  the 
amylaceous  or  starch  group  of  compounds,  which  formed  a  very  large  proportion  of 
natural  and  artificial  vegetable  food,  played  also  an  important  part  in  the  sustenance 
of  the  animal.  It  was  very  questionable  how  far  the  richer  and  flesh-forming  foods, 
such  as  feeding-cakes,  could  be  employed  with  safety  in  the  rearing  and  fattening  of 
stock  without  large  admixture  with  the  less  nutritious  kiuds  of  food.  An  excessive 
quantity  of  cake  not  only  led  to  injurious  results  in  the  health  of  cattle  and  stock, 
but  determined  much  waste  of  nutritious  matter,  which  passed  through  the  animal 
system  with  the  sole  result  of  enriching  the  manure. 


CATTLE    AND    DMRY    FARMING. 


I  have  considered  this  subject  of  sufficient  importance  to  make  inquir- 
ies concerning  it  in  England.  A  friend  in  that  country  sends  me  the 
following  newspaper  extract,  which  I  hope  may  prove  of  some  value  at 
home : 

EXPERIMENTS  IN  FATTENING  STEERS. 

Professor  Brown,  experimental  superintendent  of  the  Ontario  Agricultural  College, 
writes  in  his  official  report  on  the  above  subject: 

In  speaking  of  the  weight  of  a  fattened  steer,  and  the  daily  increase  it  makes,  we 
have  to  consider  breed,  weight  of  calf  when  dropped,  food,  management,  and  age. 
The  nearer  birth  the  greater  the  daily  rate  until  the  calf  weight  is  lost  among  the 
tens-of-hundreds.  Thus,  a  calf  weighing  750  pounds  is  due  about  10  per  cent,  to  its 
birth  weight ;  tho  yearling  that  weighs  1,000,  7£  per  cent. ;  the  two-year-old  scaling 
1,500,  5  per  cent. ;  and  tho  finished,  or  rather  tho  over-fed,  show  beast  of  2,000  pounds 
can  only  record  about  tbreo  and  three-fourths  of  its  weight  as  obtained  from  tho 
average  birth-weight  of  75  pounds.  Until  the  animal,  therefore,  is  over  1,000  pounds, 
.wo  should  always  remember  the  effect  of  this  birth-weight ;  thereafter  it  may  be  left 
out  of  calculation. 

The  example  I  wish  to  submit  to  our  breeders  and  feeders  now,  is  that  of  a  pure 
white,  thoroughbred  shorthorn  steer,  calved  6th  May,  1881,  bred  by  Mr.  Hudson,  of 
Myrtle,  and  bought  by  us  from  Mr.  Hope,  of  Bow  Park*  On  the  Oth  of  April,  when  703 
days  old,  it  weighed  1,710  pounds,  which,  of  course,  gives  a  daily  rate  of  2.43  pounds  j 
the  calf- weight  from  this  would  reduce  the  actual  daily  increase  to  2.33  pounds; 
something,  no  doubt,  but  not  enough  to  interfere  when  understood  in  practice.  A 
yearling  steer  over  1,700  pounds  is  unquestionably  a  fine  example  of  what  breed,  food, 
and  management  can  do,  and  if  we  do  not  spoil  him  ho  should  scale  2,000  pounds 
when  two  years  and  four  months  old,  at  the  Provincial  Exhibition  at  Guelph,  on  25tli 
September. 

Some  interesting  experiments  were  also  made  for  beef  and  milk  with  Hereford  and 
Aberdeen  poll  grade  steer  calves.  On  this  phase  of  the  Canadian  experiments  Pro- 
fessor Brown  says : 

Having  now  got  over  the  initiatory  work  of  establishing  herds,  and  acclimatizing 
breeds,  wo  are  diverting  considerable  .attention  to  the  making  of  grades  for  milk  and 
beef  respectively.  Our  progress  in  milk  experiments  is  in  advance  of  the  other,  as 
evidenced  in  previous  reports,  as  also  is  this  advance  issue.  We  make  no  excuse  for 
this.  Our  past  beefing  experiments  have  been  with  high-graded  shorthorns,  and  the 
facts,  to  date,  are  sufficient  to  baso  upon  in  any  comparison  with  other  grades,  as  we 
will  have  to  do  when  time  calls  ;  and  what  I  wish  to  do  is  to  place  on  record  what 
our  farm  has  on  hand  for  such  a  purpose.  The  same  cows,  well-graded  shorthorns, 
averaging  six  years,  that  have  been  used  to  produce  the  steers,  with  a  thorough-bred 
shorthorn  bull,  were  selected  to  mate  with  the  Hereford  and  Aberdeen  poll  bulls. 
Necessarily,  one  of  tho  difficulties  is  to  arrange  about  equal  birth-dates,  and  another 
is  to  get  bull-calves.  We  have  been  more  fortunate  with  the  latter  than  tho  former, 
as  shown  by  the  following  list : 

Hereford  grade  steers :  Oth  April,  1882,  Huntingdon,  No.  184  (ear  label) ;  6th  Octo- 
ber, 1882,  Heathfield,  No.  103  (ear  label) ;  28th  October,  1882,  Hartford,  No.  101  (ear 
label). 

Aberdeen  poll  grade  steers:  24th  June,  1882,  Aberdeen,  No.  183;  27th  June,  1882, 
Aboyne,  170:  2d  August,  1882,  Abornethy,  No.  182. 

Tho  average  Hereford  steer  is,  therefore,  thirty-four  days  younger  than  the  Aber- 
deen poll  average,  and  this  must  bo  most  carefully  noted  in  all  future  reporting. 

OD  Oth  April,  1883,  tho  earliest  birth  of  the  lot,  when  a  Hereford  was  one  year  old, 
weights,  ages  in  days,  and  daily  rates  were  as  follows : 


Description. 

Weight,  9th 
April,  1883. 

Ageindays. 

Daily  rate 
of  increase. 

Hereford  : 

Pound*. 
790 

365 

Pounds. 
2.16 

Heatlii:old 

552 

185 

3.00 

Hartford  '                   

492 

163 

3.02 

Abci  ••'..  i.:n  poll: 
Aberdeen   ...........        ..                            

740 

289 

2.56 

-Aboyne                                                                                       . 

750 

286 

2.60 

670 

243 

2.75 

A  mean  of  2.73  for  the  Hereford  and  2.64  for  the  Aberdeen  polL 


48 


CATTLE  AND '  DAIRY  '  FARMING, 


FEEDING  CATTLE  OX  TURNIPS. 

The  following  are  the  results  of  an  interesting  experiment  made  by  Mr.  Robert 
Logan,  Birkenside,  Earlston,  with  the  view  of  testing  the  comparative  merits  of  sliced 
and  pulped  turnips  as  a  feed  for  cattle :  On  tie  llth  of  October,  1882,  three  Canadian 
bullocks,  live  weight  '32  cwt.,  3  quarters,  were  bought  for  £64  5  a.,  or  39s.  2$d.  per  cwt., 
live  weight.  On  February  C,  1883,  the  same  animals  were  sold  at  Haymarket,  Edin- 
burgh, live  weight  43  cwt.,  14  pounds,  for  £105,  or  48s.  8d.  per  cwt.,  live  weight. 
The  gain  in  weight  was  10 cwt.,  1  quarter,  14  pounds ;  in  money,  £40  15s.  These  bull- 
ocks were  fed  on  sliced  turnips,  of  which  they  consumed  218  pounds  per  24  hours. 
On  October  11, 1882,  a  second'  lot  of  three  Canadian  bullocks,  live  weight,  31  cwt., 
2  quarters,  were  bought  for  £61  los.,  or  39s.  2$d.  per  cwt.,  live  weight.  On  February 
6. 1883,  these  were  sold  at  Haymarket,  live  weight,  39  cwt.,  2  quarters,  11  pounds,  for 
£101,  or  51s.,  per  cwt.,  live  weight,  the  gain  in  weight  having  been  8  cwt.,  11  pounds; 
in  money,  £35  5s.  These  bullocks  were  fed  on  pulped  turnips,  of  which  they  con- 
sumed 162  pounds  per  twenty-four  hours.  Lot  1  when  slaughtered  yielded  60  per 
cent,  on  gross  live  weight ;  lot  2  when  slaughtered  yielded  61  per  cent,  on  gross  live 
weight.  Both  lots  were  valued  at  the  same  price  per  cwt.,  according  to  their  live 
weight  on  October  11.  When  sold  according  to  live  weight  those  fed  on  pulp  made 
2s.  4<Z.  per  cwt.  more,  and  yielded  one  per  cent,  more  beef.  In  addition  to  the  weight 
of  turnips  given,  as  above  stated,  each  lot  were  fed  with  the  same  proportion  of  hay ; 
those  fed  on  sliced  turnips  feeding  it,  in  the  ordinary  way,  from  hecks  j  those  fed  on 
pulped  turnips  having  it  cut  amongst  the  turnips.  In  addition  each  animal  had  9 
pounds  of  mixed  cakes  and  bruised  barley.  The  whole  were  fed  in  single  boxes.  Lot 
No.  1  made  10s.  per  head  more  than  No.  2.  The  former,  however,  consumed  56  pounds 
more  turnips  per  day  than  No.  2.  The  expense  of  pulping  is  slightly  higher  than 
slice  feeding,  but  the  value,  per  live  weight  and  yield  of  beef,  according  to  the  same, 
favors  pulp. 

FOOD  OF  PREGNANT  ANIMALS. 

The  food  of  pregnant  animals  is  an  important'consideration.  Creatures  in  this  con- 
dition should  be  well  fed,  and  especially  if  they  have  to  acccomplish  a  certain  amount 
of  labor  or  yield  milk.  The  appetite  is  generally  increased,  and  there  is  a  tendency 
to  fatten.  This  tendency  should  be  somewhat  guarded  against,  as  it  may  prove 
troublesome,  particularly  if  allowed  to  proceed  to  an  extreme  degree,  when  it  may 
retard  the  development  of  the  foetus,  induce  abortion,  cause  difficult  parturition,  or 
give  rise  to  serious  after  consequences.  Thia  precaution  is  more  to  be  observed  in  the 
second  than  the  first  half  of  pregnacy,  when  the  food  should  be  plentiful,  but  not  in 
excess,  and  flesh  more  abundant  in  the  animal  than  fat.  The  food  should  also  be  of 
good  quality,  very  nutritive,  easy  of  digestion,  and  not  likely  to  induce  constipation. 
Indigestion  should  be  carefully  guarded  against,  and  unaccustomed,  hard,  damp,  bulky, 
fermentable,  moldy,  or  otherwise  hurtfully  altered  food,  should  be  avoided,  as  it  is 
likely  to  prove  indigestible,  occasion  tympanitis,  and  produce  other  injurious  results. — 
Fleming's  Veterinary  Obstetrics. 

FEEDING  OF  DAIRY  COWS. 

The  honorable  secretary  of  the  Munster  Dairy  School,  Cork,  writing  to  a  contem- 
porary, says :  There  are  sixteen  cows  in  milk,  calved  three  and  four  months.  They 
were  getting  each  daily  from  5  to  7  pounds,  according  to  yield,  of  folio  wing  mixture: 
Decorticated  cake,  bran,  and  Indian  corn  meal,  with  four  stone  of  mangels  and  hay. 
The  return  not  proving  satisfactory,  I  proposed  the  dietary  should  bo  as  follows:  2 
pounds  bean  meal,  2  pounds  crushed  oats,  3  pounds  decorticated  cake,  3£  stone  man- 
gels. This  feeding  was  commenced  on  March  10.  On  March  23  the  cows  had  to  get 
fan-saved  hay  (musty).  Note  the  result : 


Date. 

Total  yield 
per  week. 

Set  for 
cream. 

Butter. 

Date. 

Total  yield 
per  week. 

Set  for 
cream. 

Butter. 

March  3    

Quarts. 
1,065 

Quarts. 
948 

Pounds. 
C7 

March  24 

Quarts. 
'     1  078 

Quarts. 
1  056 

Pound*. 
73 

ilarch  10 

1,043 

077 

(jgi 

March  31 

1  107 

1  036 

69 

March  17    

1,135 

976 

72 

Percentage  of  fat  by  lactobutyrometer :  March  9,  2.56 ;  March  29,  2.7. 

These  returns  were  carefully  and  accurately  kept  by  Mr.  Smith,  the  superintendent. 


CATTLE  AND  'DAIRY  FARMING.  49 

FATTENING  AMERICAN  CATTLE  IN  ENGLAND. 

We  see  from  these  extracts  what  importance  is  attached  to  the  sub- 
ject of  feeding  in  the  country  that  is  supposed  to  possess  the  best 
breeds  of  cattle  in  the  world,  and  how  thoroughly  this  subject  is  under- 
stood there.  I  submit  these  extracts  because  example  is  worth  more 
than  precept  in  matters  of  this  kind.  When  I  speak  of  England,  how- 
ever, in  this  connection,  the  same  remarks  apply  equally  to  Europe  en- 
tire. Perhaps  nothing  would  go  further  to  convince  the  American  of 
his  folly  in  the  parsimony  of  his  feeding,  and  the  want  of  attention  he 
gives  his  cattle,  than  to  tell  him  that  it  frequently  happens  that  the  cattle 
he  ships  to  England  and  to  the  Continent  are  taken  in  hand  by  Euro- 
pean stock  raisers  after  arrival  and  the  European  system  of  care  and 
food  applied  to  them  and  double  profits  are  realized  on  them,  when  the 
American  might  have  pocketed  this  by  the  same  attention  on  his  part, 
and  at  less  expense,  as  his  food  is  cheaper.  If  I  had  the  space  I  might 
offer  a  hundred  illustrations  of  this  that  have  come  within  my  own  ob- 
servation. ThiSj  however  is  the  most  satisfactory  one : 

AN  AMERICAN  OX. 

In  the  first  importation  of  live  stock  from  America  into  Cardiff  was  a  "white  Short- 
horn ox,  in  the  month  of  July.  Ho  was  transferred  by  his  purchaser  to  the  pastures 
of  Grange  Farm,  Mumhles,  near  Swansea,  at  £45.  Here  with  an  English  cow  for 
his  companion  he  made  good  progress,  won  a  prize  in  1878,  and  at  Christmas  weighed 
80  score  18  pounds,  realizing  for  his  feeder  £67  8s.  4d!. — The  London  Standard. 

Persuasion,  scolding,  and  argument  are  unnecessary  to  show  our  peo- 
ple their  folly  in  their  neglect  of  cattle  when  we  have  such  examples  as 
this.  At  a  recent  exhibition  in  Paris  a  Canadian  cow  was  universally 
admired,  and  when  I  inquired  to  what  breed  she  belonged,  the  French- 
man only  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  said  she  came  from  America  as 
common  cattle,  and  that  he  had  polished  her  up.  "'What  did  you  do  for 
her  ?"  1  i  nquired.  i  'Well,"  says  he, f  <I  c  urried  and  brushed  her  every  morn- 
ing because  she  was  dirty  and  rough ;  I  fed  her  on  the  best  cotton-seed 
cake,  bran  and  hay,  and  kept  her  in  the  stall  all  the  time.  She  has  borne 
one  calf  since  I  have  had  her.  As  a  milker  she  is  not  a  success,  but  the 
calf  will  be  on  exhibition  at  the  fair  two  years  hence,  and  I  am  sure  will 
take  a  premium ;  it  is  the  first  calf  in  France."  The  food  enumerated  here 
(indeed,  all  food)  is  two  to  one  cheaper  in  the  United  States  than  it  is 
in  Europe.  This  must  be,  since  we  supply  Europe  with  the  articles  that 
they  value  most  as  cattle  food.  With  such  facts  placed  before  our  peo- 
ple, it  seems  to  me  they  can  see  wherein  they  fail,  and  that  they  have 
untold  treasures  in  their  home  breeds  of  cattle  if  they  will  go  to  work 
properly  to  develop  them.  To  what  purpose  is  it  that  they  should  come 
to  Europe  and  pay  exorbitant  prices  for  cattle  if  they  allow  them  to 
deteriorate,  as  the  above  report  shows  they  do  ? 

EXERCISE  FOR  COWS. 

Mr.  L.  B.  Arnold  says  that  the  amount  of  exercise  which  an  adult  cow  requires  is 
but  very  little,  and  all  she  gets  beyond  what  is  necessary  for  her  health  occasions  a 
draft  upon  her  system  which  must  bo  made  up  by  extra  feed  or  a  loss  in  her  milk 
product,  or  perhaps  both  effects  may  bo  apparent.  Every  expenditure  of  force,  whether 
in  locomotion  or  labor,  is  made  at  the  expense  of  the  food  consumed  by  the  animal 
exerting  the  force.  There  is  no  evasion  of  this  rule,  and  he  who  causes  his  animals, 
whether  milch  cowa  or  beasts  of  burden,  to  make  exertions  that  could  be  avoided  is 
wast  ing  his  means  of  profit.  The  man  who,  having  a  given  load  to  move  twenty  miles, 
takes  a  path  that  will  require  twenty-five  miles  to  reach  his  destination,  is  not  more 
unwise  than  the  dairyman  who  causes  his  cows  to  do  25  per  pent,  more  traveling  and 

H.  Ex.  51 4 


50  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

exertion  than  is  necessary  to  supply  themselves  with  food.  This  may  seem  like  spin- 
ning a  fine  thread,  but  it"  is  the  sum  of  such  threads  that  determine  the  question  of 
profit  with  the  dairyman.  The  loss  in  milk  production  by  more  travel  in  grazing  than 
is  necessary  for  maintaining  the  health  and  vigor  of  a  herd  of  cows  is  often  very  con- 
siderable. Very  few  lierds  are  free  from  some  loss  in  this  direction.  In  woodland 
pastures,  and  faugh  and  hilly  ones,  and  in  ranges  necessarily  large  because  the  laud 
is  poor  and  feed  scanty,  the  yield  of  milk  is  always  inferior,  being  cut  short  by  the 
long  distances  necessary  to  travel  for  gathering  a  supply  of  food.  The  loss  in  milk 
from  feeding  in  pastures  of  such  a  character  as  to  require  cows  to  be  all  day  in  filling 
themselves  may  be  plainly  seen  by  any  observant  farmer.  A  difference  of  25  or  30  per 
cent.,  and  even  of  50  per  cent.,  will  be  easily  made  between  such  fare  and  a  full  sup- 
ply of  feed  easy  of  access,  either  by  grazing  or  by  soiling. 

Large  ranges  of  pastures  are  not  advisable  for  cows  in  milk.  It  is  better  to  supply 
only  pasture  enough  to  furnish  grazing  till  grass  begins  to  fail  from  dry  weather,  and 
to  supply  the  herd  with  soiling  crops  through  the  middle  of  the  summer  at  least.  The 
saving  in  land  where  land  has  much  value  is  enough  by  this  course  to  pay  for  all  the 
extra  labor  it  occasions,  and  the  increase  of  milk  which  will  be  gained  becomes  a 
source  of  increased  profit.  One  would  hardly  imagine,  until  he  tries  it,  how  much 
the  yield  of  milk  for  the  season  will  be  augmented  by  such  a  course.  In  the  first 
place,  it  saves  the  cows  an  immense  deal  of  travel  if  they  can  have  their  feed  pre- 
sented to  them  in  the  stable  or  other  convenient  place,  instead  of  their  having  to  run 
after  it.  Then,  it  often  saves  them  a  great  deal  of  depressing  exposure  to  sun  and 
storms  and  flies.  They  are  enabled  also  to  make  better  use  of  the  food  they  consume, 
by  reason  of  having  more  leisure  for  ruminating  than  they  can  have  if  they  have  to 
pick  their  living  by  constant  travel.  The  sum  of  all  these  advantages  has  a  telling 
effect  upon  the  resources  of  the  farmer*  and  he  cannot  afford  to  ignore  them.  If  he 
has  rough  places,  woodland,  or  thin  pastures,  which  will  afford  only  scanty  feed,  it  is 
better  to  put  young  stock  upon  it  to  pick  the  scanty  feed.  They  can  use  it  without 
loss.  They  require  considerable  exercise  to  work  oif  their  surplus  energies,  and  to 
promote  growth  of  frame  and  assimilation,  and  they  won't  mind  the  travel  necessary 
to  gather  the  grass  from  such  places.  But  the  milch  cow  which  has  her  energies 
taxed  to  the  utmost  to  elaborate  a  bountiful  flow  of  milk  has  no  vital  force  to  spare. 
She  needs  to  husband  to  the  best  advantage  all  she  has  to  enable  her  to  do  her  full 
work,  and  the  farmer  who  intelligently  plans  his  operations  will  spare  her  all  the  ex- 
ertions he  possibly  can. 

CATTLE  SHOWS  IN  ENGLAND. 

If  I  enter  on  such  particulars  it  is  because  I  sympathize  keenly  witlu 
the  Department  in  its  efforts  in  behalf  of  American  cattle,  and  because 
it  seems  to  me  that  nothing  would  be  more  valuable  to  our  breeders 
than  the  experience  of  countries  that  surpass  us  and  have  brought  their 
cattle  to  such  a  high  standard  of  perfection.  There  are  other  consider- 
ations that  must  not  be  ignored  that  have  contributed  to  the  advance- 
ment of  the  standard  of  European  cattle,  and  to  leave  this  consideration 
umnentioned  would  be  to  make  my  dispatch  imperfect,  viz,  cattle  shows 
or  exhibitions.  Apart  from  the  interest  and  benefit  that  accrue  to  En- 
gland from  having  fine  cattle,  the  system  observed  in  that  country,  and 
to  a  less  extent  on  the  Continent,  of  having  what  is  called  shows,  offers 
additional  stimulus  and  incentive  to  have  fine  cattle,  that  has  caused 
the  cattle  of  Europe  to  be  pushed,  as  it  were,  to  the  high  point  which  they 
have  attained,  and  keeps  them  there.  It  has  caused  common  stock  to 
disappear  entirely  from  Europe. 

In  England  for  every  distinctive  breed  of  cattle  there  is  a  society  to 
look  to  the  interest  and  its  advancement  This  is  done  by  shows  and 
exhibitions.  There  is  a  Shorthorn  society,  a  Jersey  society,  a  Devon, 
a  Southdown,  and  a  Cart-horse  society.  Where  such  keen  rivalry  is 
excited  as  is  done  by  these  numerous  societies,  all  having  for  their  spe- 
cial aim  the  advancement  of  the  different  breeds,  it  is  in  noway  curious 
that  scrubby  cattle  of  every  kind  have  disappeared  and  that  they  have 
been  converted  into  blooded  cattle.  This  is  a  truth  that  it  seems  to  me 
shows  Americans  that  they  have  but  to  offer  the  same  inducements  to 
accomplish  like  results. 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  51 

HOW  CATTLE  DEGENERATE. 

Should  the  careful  nursing,  constant  and  minute  attention,  bestowed 
upon  the  English  breeds  of  cattle  be  relaxed ;  should  they  become  care- 
less and  indifferent,  herd  them  together  in  vast  numbers,  and  place 
care-takers  over  them  that  are  reckless  and  vicious,  within  twenty 
years  almost  every  tra(&  of  what  is  known  as  fine  blooded  cattle  would 
be  eradicated.  As  proof  of  this  no  better  illustration  could  be  offered 
than  we  find  in  the  wild  mongrel  Texas  herd.  These  cattle  are  unques- 
tionably descendants  of  the  Spanish  stock  introduced  into  Mexico  by 
the  early  Spanish  settlers  towards  the  year  1500.  We  know  from  his- 
tory that  Mexico  possessed  no  cattle  or  horses,  because  those  ridden  by 
Cortez  and  his  band  inspired  superstitious  reverence  that  was  one  of 
the  chief  factors  in  the  easy  conquest  of  Mexico.  We  know  from  his- 
tory that  both  cattle  and  horses  were  imported  by  the  Spaniards  into 
Mexico.  With  a  mild  climate,  forage  in  abundance,  the  absence  of 
beasts  of  prey,  and  the  negligence  of  man  these  cattle  increased  to  a 
marvelous  extent,  but  relapsed  into  their  natural  state  and  lost  every 
trace  of  breeding  that  their  ancestors  had  so  highly  possessed.  It  would 
not  have  been  worth  while  for  the  Spaniards  to  import  cattle  to  -Mexico 
if  they  had  been  as  inferior  in  quality  as  those  of  Texas ;  therefore  we 
know  with  almost  exactness  that  the  cattle  from  which  this  mongrel  race 
has  sprung  was  the  splendid  stock  of  Spain,  that  now  holds  equal  rank 
with  the  best  breeds  in  Europe. 

What  lesson  does  this  teach  Americans'?  It  shows  them  on  the  one 
hand  what  care  and  attention  will  do  and  on  the  other  what  negligence 
will  undo.  It  shows  them  that  the  question  of  blood  is  a  question  of 
care  and  attention,  and  that  we  have  untold  treasures  in  the  races  of 
cattle  that  we  now  regard  as  scrubs. 

IMPORTS  OF  BLOODED  CATTLE  INTO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Mr.  Wade  Hampton,  sr.,  of  South  Carolina,  was  one  of  the  first  to  im- 
port blooded  cattle  into  the  United  States.  These  were  cows  and  bulls 
of  the  Durham  race.  I  think  this  was  about  the  year  1782  or  1783.  By 
careful  attention  this  stock  flourished  and  did  exceedingly  well.  The 
common  cattle  of  the  neighborhood  of  Columbia,  S.  C.,  were  dashed  con- 
siderably by  what  was  soon  known  as  the  "Hampton  stock."  I  do  not 
know  the  exact  subsequent  history  of  this  stock,  or  whether  there  exists 
a  trace  of  it  now.  It  would  be  interesting  and  valuable  to  the  Depart- 
ment to  get  a  statement  from  Senator.  Hampton  relating  to  this  subject, 
as  well  as  to  others  in  the  Unfted  States  who  are  interested  in  the  sub- 
ject of  breed.  From  such  data-  one  could  form  an  opinion  perhaps  of 
how  short  a  time  is  required  for  a  breed  of  cattle  to  lose  their  distinctive 
qualities,  and  from  that  to  judge  of  how  long  it  requires  for  a  breed  to 
become  pure.  That  which  I  have  said  here  of  cattle  may  be  equally 
applied  to  our  horses. 

THE  AMERICAN  FARMERS  AT  FAULT. 

With  a  virgin  soil,  a  large  area  under  cultivation,  good  seasons,  and 
an  abundant  yield,  life  has  gone  so  easy  with  the  American  farmer,  that 
economic  questions  have  not,  up  to  this  time,  forced  him  to  a  study  of 
these  things,  as  it  has  in  Europe,  where  density  of  population  is  so 
evenly  balanced  with  the  means  of  subsistence.  There  is  a  sad  want 
of  enterprise  on  his  part ;  his  progress  has  not  kept  equal  pace  with  that 


52  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY    FARMING. 

of  the  mechanic,  the  artisan,  and  others  in  their  productive  achieve- 
ments, when  less  mental  and  laborious  efforts  are  required  from  him 
than  any  other  calling  to  arrive  at  equally  successful  results.  I  am  glad 
to  see  the  Department  taking  time  by  the  forelock,  and  doing  for  the 
farmer  in  its  efforts  to  elevate  the  standard  of  our  cattle,  that  which 
density  of  population  will  force  succeeding  generations  to  do. 

Nearly  all  of  our  States  have  agricultural  departments  connected 
with  their  State  governments.  If  each  State  would  hold  a  series  of 
fairs  or  exhibitions  of  all  agricultural  products,  with  liberal  inducement 
in  the  shape  of  premiums  for  the  best  native  breeds,  requiring  the  ex- 
hibitor to  give  a  full  account  of  the  father  and  mother  of  the  cattle 
they  exhibit,  the  mean  temperature  of  the  country  from  which  the  cattle 
came,  the  nature  of  the  subsoil,  food,  and  other  things  that  would  re- 
quire a  higher  and  more  thorough  knowledge  on  the  part  of  the  farmer 
concerning  his  cattle,  it  would  go  far  to  elevate  the  standard  of  home 
breeds.  This  is  not  speculative,  it  is  a  certainty,  since  the  same  system 
works  so  well  in  Europe. 

I  would  recommend  also  to  each  of  our  State  agricultural  departments 
to  purchase,  say  one  hundred  of  the  best  of  our  common  mongrel  cattle, 
breed  and  care  for  them  by  the  most  approved  methods,  and  try  to  solve 
the  problem  of  how  long  it  requires,  with  care,  to  make  a  breed  of  cattle 
pure.  My  reason  for  men tionin  g  so  great  a  number  to  experiment  with  is 
this :  Out  of  one  hundred  cattle  experiments  could  be  made  to  develop 
certain  qualities,  such  as  those  that  would  give  the  highest  quantity  of 
milk,  like  the  Holsteius  or  Shorthorn ;  and  others  that  would  give  the 
best  quality  of  milk,  like  the  Jersey ;.  those  that  would  give  milk  for  a 
certain  quality  of  cheese,  like  the  Fletchet,  &c.  The  results  of  these 
tests  might  be  shown  at  a  national  or  a  permanent  international  exhibi- 
tion, to  be  held  in  some  central  point,  where  all  those  who  take  an  in- 
terest could  see  the  result  and  benefit  by  it.  From  this  number  of  cattle 
worthless  cattle  could  be  thinned  outand  the  best  retained  to  breed  from. 

I  inclose  list  of  "Agricultural  shows  "*  held  in  England  the  present 
year.  This  does  not  include  the  different  society  shows,  such  as  the 
Shorthorn  Society,  the  Jersey,  the  Carthorse,  and  hundreds  of  other 
societies.  We  have  two  cattle  to  one  in  England,  our  population  is 
nearly  double  that  oY  England,  and  in  intelligence  and  polish  the  Amer- 
ican farmer  is  superior  to  the  European,  but  in  practical  results  he  lags 
far  behind. 

THE  AMERICAN  CRAZE  FOR  ENGLISH  CATTLE. 

The  English  farmer  finds  another  inducement  in  having  fine  cattle 
over  those  of  our  own  country,  and  this  is  in  uthe  American  craze  for 
English  cattle,"  as  this  extract  from  the  Times  will  show: 

The  American  demand  has  given  Hereford  cattle  at  heightened  position  and  better 
prices,  but  the  impetus  has  been  nothing  equal  to  that  accorded  to  the  Aberdeen  Black 
Polls.  The  extraordinary  advanced  prices  realized  for  the  more  fashionable  strains 
of  these  last  season  are  well  known,  and  may  appear  likely  enough  to  bo  fully  sus- 
tained for  some  time  to  come.  The  dispersion  of  the  Bridgend  Polled  herd  on  the  13th 
of  September  affords  sufficient  evidence  of  this,  when  some  of  the  Pride  strains  were 
disposed  of  at  marvelous  figures.  The  Prides  hold  pretty  much  the  same  position 
among  the  Black  Polls  as  Duchesses  do  to  Shorthorns,  and  at  the  Tillyfour  sale  in 
1880  Mr.  R.  C.  Auld,  the  owner  of  the  Bridgend  herd,  was  tempted  to  give  270  guineas 
for  a  female  of  the  tribe.  At  that  time  his  investment  was  looked  upon  as  almost  as 
great  a  piece  of  folly  as  Mr.  Platt's  purchase  of  the  Hereford  bull  Horace  in  1876  at 
500  guineas,  or  Lord  Fitzhardiuge's  splendid  bid  of  4,500  guineas  for  Duke  of  Con- 

*  List  published  immediately  following  this  report. 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  53 

naught  in  1875 ;  and  as  to  Mr.  Auld's  Pride  of  Aberdeen  9th,  the  animal  having  en- 
riched the  herd  -with  three  daughters  since  coming  into  his  possession,  all  four  were 
brought  to  the  auction  ring  on  the  13th  of  last  month,  and  realized  the  magnificent 
Bum  of  1,365  guineas.  Pride  of  Aberdeen  9fch  was  bred  by  the  late  Mr.  M'Combie, 
and  formed  one  of  his  famous  Parisian  group  at  the  Grand  International  Exhibition. 
She  was  purchased  by  Mr.  Wilken  for  385  guineas,  but  her  yearling  daughter  realized 
510  guineas,  the  highest  price,  it  is  said,  yet  given  for  a  Polled  animal.  The  purchaser 
of  the  latter  was  Mr.  Walker,  who  was  understood  to  have  bought  her  for  America. 

While  the  demand  for  Herefords  appears  to  be  all-in-all  for  bulls,  but  nothing  very 
extraordinary  for  cows  and  heifers,  that  for  Aberdeen  Black  Polls  gives  a  similar  pre- 
eminence to  females,  as  is  to  be  found  in  sales  of  Shorthorns.  Thus  at  the  Bridgend 
auction  now  being  referred  to,  12  cows  averaged  £114  19s. (5d.  each;  11  two-year-old 
heifers,  £85  10s.  Gd. ;  8  yearling  heifers,  £156  3s.  9d?.,  and  7  heifer  calves,  £90  7s.  each, 
but  the  average  for  2  two-year-old  bulls  was  only  £53  lls.,  and  that  for  11  bull- 
calves  £29  ts.pd.,  causing  the  general  average  for  51  animals,  the  total  number  sold, 
to  be  £90  16s.,  the  sum  realized  being  £4,631 11s.  The  North  British  Agriculturist 
gives  the  averages  and  highest  individual  prices  of  the  principal  tribes  sold  at  this 
sale,  which  are  as  fellows: 


Tribes. 

Average. 

Higheat 
price. 

3  Vines                                       .                             .                                  . 

£99    8    0 

£204  15 

5Pridos  

810  16    0 

535  10 

116    4    0 

109  10 

19  descendants  of  the  Queen  foundation    ................          .................. 

72  14    7 

183  15 

This  is  how  Americans  make  high  feeding  and  good  attention  pay  in 
England.  With  such  prices  an  Englishman  can  well  afford  to  feed  and 
otherwise  spend  nearly  $200  per  annum  on  a  cow  or  bull.  In  Europe 
apple  and  pear  exhibitions  are  held,  as  well  as  egg  and  chicken  exhibi- 
tions; in  fine,  there  is  as  great  a  variety  of  exhibitions  as  there  are  articles 
to  be  devoured  by  man,  all  having  for  their  lent  the  elevation  of  the  stand 
ard  of  the  article  exhibited.  Will  it  not  occur  on  the  same  line  of  rea- 
soning that  Americans  will  one  day  go  to  England  for  their  cats,  dogs, 
fish,  pears,  apples,  as  for  their  cattle?  Dogs  have  already  been  im- 
ported into  America  at  extravagantly  high  prices  paid  in  England. 
There  is  no  telling  where  u  a  craze"  will  stop,  once  it  begins.  We  have 
also  committed  the  same  folly  in  importing  "blooded  hogs."  Think  of 
"  a  blooded  hog,"  so  called  because  it  was  large,  in  fine  order,  and  had 
the  marks  of  care  and  attention,  and  easily  palmed  oif  on  the  American 
as  "  a  blooded  Berkshire." 

If  Congress  would  enact  now  that  there  would  be  opened  in  the  year 
1900  a  grand  international  exhibition,  and  that  a  premium  of  $100,000 
would  be  given  for  the  finest  exhibit  of  native  Ireeds  of  all  kinds,  and 
the  same  for  all  breeds  of  cattle  from  every  quarter  of  the  world,  I  be- 
lieve firmly  that  some  enterprising  American  could  take  each  premium ; 
that  is  to  say,  he  could  take  the  premium  not  only  offered  for  the  Ameri- 
can breed,  but  that  the  American  cattle  that  had  won  the  premium 
could  compete  with  all  foreign  cattle  and  gain  the  second  also.  At  any 
rate  this  is  worth  a  trial,  and  $1,000,000  offered  in  premiums  alone  could 
not  be  better  spent,  as  it  would  stimulate  the  American  stock-breeder 
to  the  necessary  effort  to  elevate  the  standard  of  native  breeds. 

GOVERNMENT  ENCOURAGEMENT  TO  EUROPEAN  STOCK. 

All  the  exhibitions  held  in  Europe  are  encouraged  in  every  way  by 
the  King,  Queen,  Emperor,  or  what  not,  of  the  country  in  which  the 
exhibition  is  held.  The  Queen  of  England  exhibits  cattle  at  every  show 
in  England,  as  does  the  Prince  of  Wales.  A  cow,  the  property  of  tho 


54 


CATTLE   AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 


Qaeen,  took  second  premium  at  a  recent  exhibition,  and  a  bull  third.  No 
exhibition  is  too  insignificant  and  unimportant  in  Belgium  for  the  King 
and  Queen  of  the  Belgians  to  open  in  person  and  inspect  personally  each 
article  and  to  encourage  it  by  being  an  exhibitor  of  the  product.  This, 
it  seems  to  me,  is  setting  an  excellent  example  to  our  governors  and 
others  at  home  who  hold  as  high  positions  in  public  esteem  and  are 
looked  to  as  much  for  examples.  But,  alas,  politics  is  the  all-en  grossing 
topic  with  most  of  our  governors  and  legislators,  and  anything  that  is 
outside  of  this  is  insipid  to  them ;  and,  therefore,  it  is  for  the  people, 
after  all,  to  correct  by  politics  the  evils  of  politics,  and  to  elect,  and  re- 
tain as  long  as  possible  when  elected,  men  who  will  look  to  their  inter- 
ests and  try,  by  wise  legislation,  to  advance  them. 

I  have  abstained  as  much  as  possible,  in  this  dispatch,  from  theorizing. 
I  have  advanced  in  its  stead  such  methods  as  have  accomplished  the 
results  we  are  in  search  of  abroad.  Example  is  worth  more  than  pre- 
cept; we  have  the  example,  and  all  that  remains  for  us  to  do  is  to  follow 
it,  to  achieve  like  results,  By  adopting  these  simple  methods,  within 
twenty  years  it  would  appear  as  absurd  to  us  that  we  ever  sent  abroad 
for  a  bull,  cow,  sheep,  dog,  or  hog  as  it  does  now  that  we  imported  the 
English  sparrow. 

GEOKGE  C.  TANNER, 

Consul. 


Agricultural  shows  held  in  England  during  Hie  year  1883,  exclusive  of  special  society  shows 
such  as  Shorthorn.  Jersey,  Cart-horse^  <$ c.,  sluowt. 


Date  of  show. 

Name  of  society. 

Where  held. 

Nature  of  meeting. 

May  26  to  June  1. 
May  28  to  June  1 

Agricultural    Hall    Com- 
pany, Limited. 
Batb  and  West  of  England 

Agricultural  Hall, 
Islington. 
Brid^water 

Horses,  implements,  and  miscella- 
neous articles. 

May  30 

and  Southern  Counties. 

butter,  poultry,  and  implements. 

May  31  . 

Eastern  District  of  Stir- 

Falkii-k 

June  8 

lingshire. 
Stirlin"     . 

Stirling 

KDd  poultry. 
Do 

June  8  

Ripon.     

Ripon            ....... 

Stock  poultry  pigeons  dogs  &c. 

June  12  14 

Herefordshire 

Hereford 

June  26-29    

Royal     Counties    (Hants 

Winchester 

Do 

June  13  14  15 

and  Berks). 
Wirral  and.  Birkenhead 

Birkenhead 

June  13  14 

Essex 

June  13  14 

Peterborou  "h 

Do 

June  19,  20  

Maryborough  and  Pewsey 

NeTvbury 

Stock  &c 

June  19  20  21..  .. 

Vale. 
Worcestershire 

Worcester 

June  20 

Thorno 

Thorno  (TTorks) 

ers,  &c. 

Juno  20,  21  

Royal  Cornwall  ...     ... 

Trnro 

June  20,  21  

Norfolk  

I'akenham  

Do. 

June  2  1,22  

Northeast  of  Ireland 

Belfast 

Juno  27  28 

July  27  28 

Sinful  k 

&c. 

June  27'  28     .. 

Edinburgh 

July  

United  East  Lotliiin 

July  5  6  7  

Notta     ... 

July  1G-20  

Iloval    Agricultural    So- 

York *" 

jjn 

July  6 

ciety  of  England. 

Banff 

July  31  

Malton  

Malton 

dairy  produce. 

July  17  ,  

Stranraer  and   Rhius   of 

Stranraer 

Cuttle  horses  sheep  &o. 

Julv  10  11  12    .. 

Galloways. 
Lincolnshire 

July  13  

Bedfordshire  

Bedford       ** 

July  19 

Rovsil  Northern 

July  24 

Huntingdonshire 

St  Ives 

dairy  produce. 

Julv24.25.20... 

Berkeley... 

Stock,  implements,  horticultural 

CATTLE  AND  DALRY  FARMING.  55 

Agricultural  shows  held  in  England  during  the  year,l8&3,  ^c.— Continued. 


Date  of  ahow. 

Name  of  society. 

Where  held. 

Nature  of  meeting. 

Tnly  25 

Ormskirk  Soutliport  and 

Southport  

Stock,  implements,  &c. 

July  25  26 

Bootle. 

Melton  Mowbray. 

Do. 

July  ?»'  26 

Stock,  implements,  and  poultry. 

Tn  1v  94*  97 

Stock,  implements,   poultry,  and 

July  95  9G 

ural  of  Scotland. 
Cambridgeshire  and  Isle 

Ely...            

dairy  produce. 
Stock,"  poultry,  implements,  &o. 

July  °6 

of  Ely.& 

Barnsloy  

Stock,  poultry,  dogs,  &c. 

July  26 

Saltburn  -  b  y  -  1  h  e 

Stock,  &c. 

July  26 

Sea. 

Do. 

July  l)7 

Horse  and  dog. 

July  28 

Western  District  of  Fife.. 

Dunfermline  

Stock,  implements,  and  poultry. 

Stock. 

Drilliekl  and  East  Eiding. 

No    meeting    ibr 

Stock,  poultry,  pigeons,  &c. 

July  25,  26,  27  

Shropshire  and  West  Mid- 
land. 
Yorkshire         .      ........ 

1883. 
Whitchurch    (Sa- 
lop). 
No    meeting    for 

Stock  and  implements. 
Stock,  implements,  &c. 

An"    1 

Crook           

1883. 

Stock,  poultry,  dogs,  dairy  prod- 

Ang   1 

Norton  Farmers'  Club 

Chesterfield  

uce,  &c. 
Stock,  &c. 

Aue    2 

Coquetdalo          

Eothbury  

Stock,  implements,  and  poultry. 

Aug    3 

Shifnal  (Salop)  

Stock,  implements,  &c. 

Ansr    (5 

E>lso            

Stock  and  implements. 

Aug  29 

Whitby 

Whitby  

Stock,  implements,  &e. 

Aug.   8 

Badminton             ......... 

Stock. 

Aug    7  8 

Staffordshire 

Lichfleld  

Stock,  implements,  produce,  and 

Atig.  2    ......... 

Northumberland    

Berwick-on-Tweed 

poultry. 
Stock,  implements,  and  poultry. 

Aug  15 

Beamish       Pontop      and 

Stock,  implements,  dairy  produce, 

An"1.—... 

Consett. 
Inverness    Farmers'    So- 

No   meeting    for 

poultry,  and  dogs. 
Stock,  implements,  &c. 

ciety. 

1883. 
Lauderdale  

Stock,  implements,  and  poultry. 

AUC    6  7 

LisrnorG  Farmin^  Society 

Lismore,    County 

Horses,  horned  cattle,  sheep,  and 

Aug 

Waterford. 

swine. 
Stock,  implementa,  and  poultry. 

Stock,  &c. 

Aug  20 

Eichmondshire 

Eichmond(York)  .  . 

Stock,  implements,  roots,  &c. 

Aug.  6 

Ecclesfield  

Hillsboro'     Park, 

Stock,  &c. 

An??  18 

Keio-hley 

Sheffield. 
Keighley  .. 

Do. 

Aug  20 

Stock,  implements,  &o. 

Aug  25 

Halifax  and  Calderdale 

Halifax.'....:  

Do. 

Au"1  28  29  30  31 

Eoyal  Dublin 

Ball's     Bridge, 

Horaea. 

Sept  12 

Wi  ""ton  District 

Dublin. 
Wilton  

Stock,  implements,  &c. 

Sept! 

"Vale  of  Conway 

Stock,  implements,  dogs,  poultry, 

Sept    4 

butter,  &c. 
Stock,  &c. 

Sept.  4  5 

Warwickshire 

Stock,  flowers,  implements,  &c. 

Sept  5  6 

Stock,  implements,  roots,  cheese, 

Sept  5-7 

and  horticultural)  . 
Eoyal  Manchester  Liver- 

butter, poultry,  horticultural  ma- 
chinery, <Src. 
Live  stock,  implements,  farm  pro- 

Sept. 12  

pool,  and   North   Lan- 
cashire. 
Northeast    •  Somerset 

Newton    Park, 

duce,  dogs,  poultry,  &c. 
Stock,  butter,  and  cheese. 

Sept  12 

Farmers'  Club. 
Wayland 

near  Bath. 

Stock,  &o. 

Sept.  13 

W  aterford    Farming 

Do. 

Sept  14" 

Society. 

Stock  and  implements. 

Sept  14 

Kelso  

Earn  sales. 

Sept.  11 

Cartmel 

Cartmel  

Stock,  dogs,  poultry,  crops,  &0. 

Sept  14  15 

Stock  and  implements. 

Sept.  20  

Royal  and  Central  Bucks 

Great  Mario  w  

Stock,  implements,  &c. 

Sent.  — 

White  Lion  Hotel, 

Eoots,  ploughing  matches,  hedge- 

Sept.  26 

Hoyal  South  Bucks 

Banbury. 

cutting,  draining,  &c. 
Farm  aiid  garden  produce,  and 

Sept.  26 

Fromo  District 

ploughing  match. 
Cheese,  butter,  stock,  and  imple- 

Sept. 28  

Oswestry  District 

ments. 
Stock,  implements,  butter,  cheese, 

Sept  . 

Buckin  crham  ...... 

poultry,  &c. 
Cattle,  sheep,  cart  and  nag  horses, 

joining  portion  of  Oxon 
and  Nort  Hants. 

pigs,  butter,  roots,  and  plough- 
ing competition. 

56  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

Agrioultural  shows  held  in  England  during  the  year  18S3,  #c. — Continued. 


Date  of  show. 

Same  of  society. 

Where  held. 

Nature  of  meeting. 

Sept  °1 

Carmarthen 

Sept  12  and  13 

Kottcrin<T 

Sept.  18 

Alf'orton  Midland  

Alferton     ....  . 

Stock  &c.                                        * 

Sept  18 

TJlverston 

Do 

!<.>pt.  — 

East  Surrey         -  -      ..... 

Croydon 

Field  roots 

Sept.  —  

Bakewell  Farmers'  Club.. 

Bakewell  

Stock,  poultry,    cheese,    butter 

Oct.  17  

Chortsey 

wool,  &c. 
Roots  and  plou<Thin°r  match 

Oct  25 

Cheese 

Oct.  30  

Inverness  ....  ..  .... 

Inverness 

Seed  grain   field  vegetables,  and 

Oct—  -.. 

Surrey              . 

potatoes. 
Ploughing  matches  roots  thatch 

Oct  — 

ing,  &c. 
Ploughing 

Oct.  9    .... 

Trinw 

Royal    Hotel 

Roots   dairy  stock    sheep    pigs 

Oct.  —  ... 

County  Kerry  ............ 

Trioig    Station, 
L.  and   N.   W. 
Railway. 

corn,  &c.,  and  local  exhibits  of 
implements. 

Stock,  implements  &c 

Oct.—  

Royal  East  Berks  ..... 

Oct.  —  

British    Dairy   Farmers' 

A  gricnltural  Hall. 

garden  produce,  and  awards  to 
laborers. 
Dairy  stock  and  produce  goats 

Oct  31  

Association. 
Royal  Jersey  

Jersey  .........  

implements,  poultry  and   pig- 
eons^ 

Nov  — 

King's  Royal  Root 

Great  Coggeshall 

Nov  22  24      . 

Norfolk  and  Norwich 

Norwich 

supplied  by&J.  K.  Iling. 

"Nov.  29  30. 

Chippenham  .  .  ......... 

Chippenham 

Stock  &c 

Nov.—  

No  show  for  1883.  . 

Roots  and  vegetables  from  seeds 

Nov.—  

Metropolitan  Root  ...... 

No  show  for  1883 

supplied  by  Webb  &  Sons. 

Dumfries  Root  ... 

No    meeting    for 

supplied  by  James  Carter  &  Co. 

Dec  1-6 

Birmingham     .  .     . 

1883. 
Biuo-ley  Hall  Bir- 

Dec.7   

Northern  Counties  

mingham. 
Inverness  .  .... 

Fat  stock  poultry  roots  &c 

Deo  11       

Torres  and  Northern 

JForres 

Deo.  10-14 

Smith  field  Club 

A  °ricult  ural  Hall 

grain,  &c. 

Dec.  13  14«  15 

Canterbury            . 

Islington. 

Deo.  18...  

Carmarthenshire        .. 

Carmarthen 

sheep,  dogs,  &c.' 

CATTLE-BREEDING  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


THE  UNITED  KINGDOM. 


REPORT  BY  CONSUL-GENERAL  MERRITT,  OF  LONDON. 

THE  DEVON. 

The  leading  physical  characteristics  of  the  Devon  breed  of  cattle  may 
be  coocisely  described  as  follows  : 

The  Devons  are  comparatively  short,  but  thick  and  heavy  for  their  height ;  the  car- 
cass is  cylindrical,  and  the  skin  has  a  beautiful  touch  to  the  hand. 

Tho  color  is  a  pure,  rich  red,  with  fine  silky  hair. 

The  horns  have  a  yellowish,  waxy  appearance,  tapering  and  gracefully  curved  np- 
wards  and  outwards.  The  head  is  small  and  well  put  on ;  the  muzzle  is  very  fine. 
The  eye  is  clear,  bright,  prominent,  and  shows  a  good  deal  of  the  white  round  it. 

The  chest  is  very  wide  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  animal.  Legs  are  short,  small, 
and  very  fine  in  the  bone,  and  the  animal  altogether  possesses  a  very  neat  and  beau- 
tiful symmetry. 

The  Devon  of  all  existing  cattle  breeds  can  lay  claim  to  be  one  which 
had  the  greatest  reputation  for  grazing  character  a  century  ago,  when 
the  Shorthorn,  the  modern  Hereford,  the  Bed  Poll,  and  others  had  no 
existence.  This  is  why  that  breed  always  stands  first  in  the  catalogues 
of  the  Srnithfield  Club  and  the  Bath  and  West  of  England  Society.  The 
latter  was  formed  in  1777,  and  the  former  before  the  last  century  closed, 
when  the  North  Devon  was  the  breed  par  excellence  for  small  bones, 
and  high  quality,  just  as  BakewelFs  new  Dishley  breed  was  among  the 
sheep  tribes. 

The  history  of  the  Devon  can  be  traced  back  until  lost  in  obscurity, 
and  Youatt  no  doubt  rightly  deems  it  to  be  one  of  the  best  existing 
representatives  of  the  original  British  breed  of  cattle.  In  modern  times 
Shorthorns  and  Herefords  have  become  more  popular  with  rent-paying 
farmers  throughout  the  Kingdom,  generally  because  they  get  the  larger 
size  and  feed  to  much  greater  weights.  Still  they  have  failed  to  sup- 
plant it  in  different  parts  of  England,  comprising  Devon,  their  native 
county,  parts  of  Somerset,  Cornwall,  Dorset,  and  Hants.  In  the  two 
last-mentioned  counties,  where  bites  of  grass  are  often  short,  they  are 
better  adapted  for  dairy  herds  than  the  Shorthorn,  and  probably  its 
popularity  with  rent-paying  farmers  in  the  fertile  vales  of  West  Somer- 
set is  greatly  enhanced  by  the  possession  of  a  variety  termed  the  Somer- 
set Devon,  which,  although  not  of  quite  such  high  quality  as  the  true 
North  Devon,  appear  to  answer  the  combined  purpose  of  dairying  and 
grazing  far  better.  As  a  dairy  animal  the  Devon  has  always  been  cele- 
brated, not  so  much  for  large  quantities  as  for  the  rich  quality  of  the 
mttk.  At  the  London  Dairy  Show  for  1883,  a  Devon  cow  belonging  to 

57 


58  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Mr.  A.  0.  Skinner,  of  Bishop's  Lydiard,  gained  second  prize  in  the  milk- 
ing trials,  and  it  was  found  that  there  was  a  greater  proportion  of  solids 
to  its  milk  than  to  that  of  the  Jersey  and  Guernsey  cows,  which  won 
prizes. 

A  sufficient  reason  for  their  being  preferred  to  Shorthorns  in  Somer- 
set was  recently  afforded  by  a  large  farmer  near  Ilminster,  accustomed  to 
let  as  many  as  one  hundred  and  fifty  cows  a  year  to  what  is  termed  a 
"  dairyman."  He  said  that  the  rent  paid  for  his  cows  was  £13  per  year,  and 
that  his  neighbor,  who  let  Shorthorns,  could  obtain  no  more,  further, 
that  when  barren,  although  his  cows  only  fed  on  an  average  to  thirty 
score  pounds  weight  of  carcasses.and  the  carcasses  of  his  neighbor's  Short- 
horns averaged  thirty-six  score  pounds,  owing  to  superior  quality  he 
was  usually  enabled  to  make  quite  as  much  money  of  the  lesser  weights 
as  his  neighbor  of  the  heavier. 

It  has  always  been  claimed  that  a  Devon  yields  a  larger  proportion  of 
roast  meat  at  the  best  joints  than  any  other  beast,  and  perhaps  there 
is  none  yielding  a  smaller  proportion  of  offal  to  the  carcass.  In  re- 
sponding to  very  early  maturity  it  would  scarcely  compete  with  the  Short- 
horn or  Hereford.  This  will  be  sufficiently  seen  by  investigating  the 
scale  of  animals  exhibited  at  the  Smithfield  Club  cattle  shows.  The 
heaviest  in  the  class  under  two  years  old  in  the  display  made  last  De- 
cember was  the  one  year  nine  months  old  steer  belonging  to  the  Queen, 
the  live  weight  of  which  was  10  cwt.,  2  qrs.,  10  Ibs.,  whereas  the  re- 
serve Hereford  of  Mr.  J.  F.  Hall,  only  one  year,  six  months,  three  days 
old,  scaled  12  cwt.,  20  Ibs.  In  fact  the  prize  winners  in  the  Hereford 
class  averaged  nearly  14  cwt.  each,  but  they  were  older. 

THE  HEREFORD. 

The  Herefords  are  remarkably  good  feeders,  laying  on  flesh  abun- 
dantly in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  food  consumed,  and  their  aptitude 
to  fatten  is  favored  by  their  general  placidity  of  temper.  They  come 
early  to  maturity,  whilst  the  beef  is  well  mottled  or  marbled,  fat  and 
lean,  and  is  highly  prized.  The  prevailing  characteristics  are  as  fol- 
lows: 

White  face,  throat,  chest,  udder,  dewlap,  mane,  lower  part  of  body  and  legs,  and 
tip  of  tail;  the  other  parts  of  the  body  red  ;  frequently  a  small  red  spot  on  the  eye, 
and  a  round  red  spot  in  the  midst  of  the  white  on  the  throat. 

The  body  is  covered  with  long  soft  glossy  hair,  with  a  tendency  to  curl.  The  horns, 
•which  are  beyond  the  medium  length,  are  tapering,  and  have  a  yellow  or  white  waxy 
appearance,  frequently  dark  at  the  ends.  Those  of  the  bull  spring  out  straightly 
from  a  broad  flat  forehead,  whilst  those  of  tho  cow  or  ox  usually  have  a  graceful 
wave  with  a  slight  spreading  upward  tendency.  The  eye  is  full. 

The  chest  is  expanded,  full,  and  deep,  and  projecting  firmly ;  the  ribs  .are  well- 
sprung  ;  the  back  is  broad  and  legs  short,  indicative  of  the  hardiness  of  constitution 
for  which  these  cattle  are  esteemed ;  the  bone  is  small,  and  the  offal  is  light.  The 
Hereford  crosses  with  almost  any  breed,  and  imparts  an  aptitude  to  fatten. 

The  Hereford  breed  is  an  old  race,  which  can  be  traced  back  at  least 
a  hundred  years.  The  best  herds  may,  no  doubt,  be  found  in  its  native 
county,  where  the  white  faces  are  to  be  found  on  almost  every  farm. 
Shropshire  also  "  swears  by  them,"  and  they  have  extended  themselves 
largely  into  Wales,  notably  into  Glamorganshire,  and  the  border  county 
of  Mon mouth.  Of  late  years  they  have  made  their  way  much  further 
afield  than  formerly,  and  their  wealth  of  flesh  would  no  doubt  cause 
them  to  be  more  generally  popular  if  possessed  of  a  higher  reputation 
for  dairy  purposes.  Still  the  latter  faculty  can  be  cultivated,  and, 
strange  to  say,  not  only  is  the  cross  of  a  Shorthorn  and  Hereford  a  pro- 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  59 

verbial  deep  milker,  but  the  slightest  dash  of  the  former  seems  to  bring 
out  the  latent  lactial  fertility  of  the  Hereford. 

Mr.  E.  C.  Tisdall  some  few  years  since  published  in  the  British  Dairy 
Farmer  Association's  Journal  a  record  of  the  milk  yields  of  sixty  of  his 
most  famous  milkers,  and  the  best  of  them  all  was  a  cow  called  "Old 
Hereford  n  which  answered  to  the  latter  description.  Mr.  Tisdall  sup- 
plies the  Kensington  district  at  the  West  End  of  London  with  milk  and 
butter,  and  keeps  a  large  herd  of  dairy  cows. 

Herefords  have  always  been  deemed  better  for  the  dairy  in  Dorset 
and  Somerset  than  in  their  own  native  county,  because  probably  they 
are  more  educated  to  serve  that  purpose.  The  breed  has  extended  into 
Cornwall,  and  Mr.  Lewis  Lloyd  has  cultivated  it  in  Surrey  within  six 
miles  of  the  metropolis.  At  the  last  Smithfield  show  he  gained  second 
and  third  prizes  in  the  class  of  steers  under  two  years  old,  one  of  his 
animals  weighing  14  cwt.  20  pounds  when  only  a  day  under  the  two 
years'  limit.  There  used  to  be  three  distinct  kinds  of  Herefords,  the 
mottle-faced,  the  gray,  and  the  white-faced  red,  which  latter  being 
smaller  in  bone  than  the  former,  has  well-nigh  everywhere  supplanted 
the  other  two. 

The  uprise  of  the  breed  in  celebrity  may  be  considered  contempora- 
neous with  the  Smithfield  Club  shows,  which  very  much  promoted  it, 
for  Mr.  Westear  won  first  prizes  for  oxen  at  the  first  Smithfield  show 
in  1799,  and  continued  to  do  so  at  the  London  shows  for  twenty  years. 
In  fact  the  Smithfield  show  record  from  1799  to  1834  gives  the  premi- 
ums won  by  the  Herefords  as  88,  more  than  double  those  of  any  other 
breed.  The  Hereford  is  no  doubt  an  extraordinary  grazier,  and  being 
likewise  of  great  constitutional  vigor  and  famous  for  possessing  broad, 
deep,  compact  forms,  there  can  scarcely  be  any  wonder  why  it  has  be- 
come so  great  a  favorite  in  the  .western  prairies  of  America  or  in  Aus- 
tralia and  New  Zealand.  In  a  general  way  the  cattle  feed  to  good  me- 
dium weights — not  quite  so  heavy  as  some  Shorthorns  perhaps,  but  very 
much  more  so  than  the  Devon. 

tfHE  SHORTHORNS. 

The  physical  characteristics  of  the  Shorthorn  breed  may  be  described, 
as  follows : 

As  the  name  indicates  the  horn  is  short,  semicircularly  curved,  and  rather  flat. 
The  color  of  the  animals  varies  from  a  white  to  a  yellowish  tinge  of  white,  some  are 
red,  others  red  and  white,  and  sometimes  the  white  and  red  are  blended,  forming  a 
beautiful  variegation  called  "roan,"  formerly  strawberry  color.  The  head  is  hand- 
some, intelligent,  and  the  expression  docile  ;  the  eye  is  bright  and  full ;  the  ears  are 
thinandfine,  well  covered  with  hair ;  the  neck  is  short,  carry  ing  the  head  gracefully,  and 
springing  straight  from  the  back,  which  is  also  straight  and  broad  and  round.  The  ribs 
arch  roundly  from  the  backbone ;  the  hips  are  well  covered  and  not  very  prominent; 
the  hind  quarters  are  long  and  full  to  the  tail,  which  hangs  straight  and  square  from 
the  body ;  the  thighs  are  full  and  deep  and  broad ;  the  lega  are  short  and  straight, 
the  under  line  is  even ;  the  shoulders  are  well  laid,  oblique,  and  falling  well  on  the' 
body,  so  as  to  form  a  round  deep  chest  with  a  full  swelling  bosom  ;  the  udder  is  large 
and  soft,  coming  well  forward,  and  the  teats  hang  squarely  from  it.  The  body  is  well 
covered  with  fine  soft  hair,  and  the  hide  is  mellow,  with  a  rich  appearance  indicating 
the  excellent  quality  of  the  beef.  Altogether  the  animal,  owing  to  the  evenness  with 
which  it  lays  on  its  flesh,  forms  nearly  a  parallelogram;  its  strong  constitution 
makes  it  adaptable  to  all  soils  and  climates,  and  its  excellencies  are  so  great  that  its 
admirers  claim  for  it  the  title  to  be  placed  as  the  first  of  our  national  breeds. 

Shorthorns  are  more  generally  propagated  than  any  other  British 
breed  of  cattle,  although  scarcely  known  beyond  the  valley  of  the  Tees 
before  the  commencement  of  the  present  century.  Their  original  name 
was  Teeswater  or  Durham  cattle,  and  they  are  still  known  more  as  Dur- 


60  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

ham  than  Shorthorns  in  many  parts  of  the  Continent.  At  one  period 
there  was  an  apprehension  that  the  Scotch  climate  would  be  unsuitable 
for  them,  but  this  has  long  since  been  dispelled,  they  being  quite  as 
generally  kept  in  many  of  the  Scotch  lowland  districts  as  the  native 
polled  cattle,  whether  Angus  or  Galloway.  They  also  flourish  almost 
at  the  Land's  End  in  the  contrary  direction,  as  is  sufficiently  proved  by 
the  splendid  specimens  Messrs.  Hoskins  &  Sons  are  accustomed  to  bring 
from  Hayle  to  the  Royal,  and  Bath,  and  West  of  England  shows. 

After  the  dispersion  of  the  herds  of  the  Brothers  Colling  those  of  the 
Booths  at  Studley  Waiiaby  and  Killerby.came  into  reputation,  together 
with  that  of  Thomas  Bates  at  Kirklevington,  all  in  [North  Yorkshire 
not  far  distant  from  the  original  locality  of  the  breed's  first  origin 
But  Shorthorns  had  early  popularity  in  Lincolnshire  and  Lancashire, 
and  the  old  red  variety  of  the  former  county  is  still  famous  in  some 
districts  for  health,  good  size,  and  constitutional  vigor.    The  successors 
of  Professor  Towneley's  Lancashire  herd  twenty  years  ago  were  credit- 
able to  that  county,  and  it  was  close  to  Lancaster  that  Mr.  Bolton  had 
his  famous  herd. 

At  the  present  day  the  Duke  of  Devonshire  at  Holker  eclipses  all 
others  so  far  as  the  county  is  concerned,  and  the  Bates  men  pay  a  pil- 
grimage from  one  end  of  the  Kingdom  to  the  other.  The  Earl  of  Lartham 
has  a  celebrated  herd  of  fashionable  Bates  cattle  at  Ormskirk.  But  it 
is  almost  impossible  to  single  out  any  quarter  of  the  Kingdom  where 
there  are  not  herds  of  Shorthorns  of  high  reputation,  from  those  of  the 
Earl  of  Bective,  Mr.  S.  B.  Foster,  and  Mr.  Handley,  in  Cumberland 
and  "Westmoreland,  to  those  of  Lord  Fitzhardinge,  Colonel  Kingscote, 
and  Mr.  St.  John  Ackers,  in  Gloucestershire;  from  Lord  Penrhyns, 
in  Forth  Wales,  to  Mr.  Hugh  Aylines,  in  .Norfolk.  Throughout  "the 
Midland  dairy  districts  large  Shorthorns  are  bred,  which  are  deep  milk- 
ers, and  a  perfect  revolution  in  Irish  cattle  has  been  effected  by  the 
agercy  of  the  Shorthorn. 

Less  than  half  a  century,  since  Irish  cattle  were  a  by- word  and  a  re- 
proach on  account  of  their  big  bones,  tough  hides,  and  unthrifty  char- 
acter; but  now. the  young  cattle  that  come  to  the  English  grazing  dis- 
tricts in  such  large  multitudes  are  well-nigh  equal  in  quality  to  Short- 
horns bred  in  England,  and  the  big  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  graziers  are 
accustomed  to  depend  almost  entirely  on  them  for  a  supply  of  their  raw 
material,  they  seldom  being  accustomed  to  breed  their  own.  The 
youngest  class  of  Shorthorns  at  Smithfield  last  December  scarcely  gave 
such  heavy  weights  as  the  corresponding  Hereford  class,  the  heaviest 
being  the  one-year,  ten-months  and  two-weeks7  old  first  prize  steer  of  Mr. 
Hugh  Goringe,  weighing  13  cwt.,  3  qrs,  4  pounds.  The  Shorthorns  ex- 
hibited on  that  occasion  were,  however,  generally  much  heavier  than 
the  Herefords,  Mr.  Herbert  Leney's  third  prize  six-year  old  cow  scaling 
21  cwt.,  while  the  Earl  of  Coventry's  giantess  eleven -year-old  Hereford, 
which  had  previously  won  several  royal  prizes,  scaling  20  cwt.,  3  qrs., 
21bs. 

:}  THE  LONGKHOKNS. 

'   The  Longhorn  cattle  may  be  described  as  follows: 

The  horns  fully  bear  out  the  name  of  the  breed ;  they  grow  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
be  very  distinctive ;  they  curve  forwards  and  hang  down  towards  the  muzzle,  and 
sometimes  actually  grow  so  much  inwards  as  to  touch  the  cheek. 

The  color  is  generally  dark  red,  brindled,  and  pied,  with  white  along  the  backs. 
The  coat  is  good  and  the  back  straight.  The  females  are  very  broad  in  the  hips  and 
are  good  milkers.  Many  of  the  cross-bred  milch  cows  in  various  parts  of  England 
enow  they  have  a  dash  of  Longhorn  blood  in  them. 

There  are,  however,  but  few  herds  of  this  variety  now  kept. 

It  crosses  well  with  other  breeds. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  61 

The  Longhorn  breed  deserves  to  be  considered  next  on  account  of  its 
antiquity,  as  at  the  early  part  of  the  century  more  Longlwrns  were  kept 
than  probably  any  other  leading  breed  of  cattle,  chiefly  because  it  was 
then  considered  to  be  the  best  dairy  breed  and  was  extensively  adopted 
as  such  in  the  Midland  counties. 

It  seems  singular  that  the  great  Bakewell  should  have  prized  it  so 
highly,  considering  that  the  bones  are  large  and  the  hides  thick  of  even 
the  better  specimens.  For  deep  milking  Shorthorns  of  the  right  kind  ex- 
cel them,  but  it  has  been  demonstrated  of  late  that  Longhorns  can  bo 
greatly  improved,  and  highly  meritorious  specimens  have  been  brought 
to  the  showyard  by  the  Duke  of  Buckingham  and  several  other  breed- 
ers, chiefly  from  the  Midlands. 

The  original  breed  of  Longhorns  appears  to  have  sprung  from  York- 
shire, thence  to  have  subsequently  receded  to  Leicestershire,  Warwick- 
shire,* and  Derbyshire  in  which  counties  they  are  now  most  ^numerous. 

THE  NORFOLK  AND  SUFFOLK  POLLED  CATTLE. 

The  breeders  of  these  cattle  have  determined  on  the  following  charac 
teristics,  which  they  should  possess  : 

The  color  red.  Tip  of  the  tail  and  udder  may  be  white,  and  the  extension  of  the 
white  of  the  udder  a  few  inches  along  the  inside  of  the  flank,  or  a  email  white  spot 
or  mark  on  the  under  part  of  the  belly  by  the  milk  veins  shall  not  be  held  as  dis- 
.qualifying  an  animal  whoso  sire  and  dam  form  part  of  an  established  herd  of  the  breed, 
or  answer  all  other  essentials  of  the  standard  descriptions. 

There  shall  be  no  horns,  slugs,  or  abortive  horns.  * 

These  cattle  are  known  in  the  counties  of  ^Norfolk  and  Suffolk  as  the 
Bed  Polled.  Among  the  good  qualities  which  they  possess  is  hardiness 
of  constitution,  which  enables  them  to  thrive  on  scanty  pasturage  and 
to  withstand  the  severe  winters  and  cold  springs  usually  experienced 
in  the  eastern  counties  of  England. 

Their  milking  properties  are  unquestionable,  as  they  have  not  a  tend- 
ency to  go  dry  like  many  other  breeds  having  a  reputation  as  dairy 
cattle,  and  it  not  unfrequently  happens  that  the  cow  will  continue  to 
yield  a  good  quantity  of  milk  from  one  calving  to  another. 
•  No  doubt  the  present  Polled  breed  was  the  result  of  a  cross  with  the 
Galloway  cattle,  large  numbers  of  which  were  formerly  brought  into 
the  eastern  counties  to  be  grazed.  The  tuft  of  hair  growing  down- 
wards on  the  forehead  is  common  to  both  breeds,  whilst  occasionally  a 
black  nose,  a  "  slug  "  horn,  or  a  spot  of  white  on  the  face,  or,  more  fre- 
quently, on  the  udder  or  belly  j  gives  an  indication  of  the  original  blood. 

The  breed  does  not  mature  early,  and  is  rather  diminutive  in  size. 
The  heaviest  specimen  at  the  late  Smithfield  Club  show  was  Mr.  Alfred 
Taylor's  ox,  by  King  Charles,  which,  within  a  day  of  four  years-old, 
scaled  17  cwt.,  3  qrs.,  and  6  Ibs.,  and  Mr.  E.  E.  Lofftfs  eight-year-old 
cow,  which  was  reserved  in  the  female  class,  closely  approximated  to 
this  weight,  being  17  cwt.,  2  qrs.,  and  24  Ibs. 

THE  SUSSES  CATTLE. 

The  Sussex  breed  was  formerly  used  in  place  of  horses  for  plowing 
and  heavy  work.  They  were  very  active  and  well  suited  to  such  pur- 
poses; however,  of  late  the  working  of  oxen  has  decreased  in  a  marked 
degree,  and  the  breeders  of  Sussex  cattle  have  turned  their  attention 
to  the  improvement  of  the  animals  with  great  success.  They  resemble 
the  Devons  in  many  respects,  but  are  larger.  Formerly  they  were  not, 


62  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

as  a  rale,  grazed  till  after  they  were  done  With  for  working,  but  now 
they  are  got  to  early  maturity  and  produce  good  beef.  In  fact,  they  are 
so  much  refined  that  they  are  considered  by  many  to  approach  very 
closely  to  the  Hereford  in  wealth  for  grazing  purposes. 

At  present  the  breed  is  restricted  very  much  to  the  country  that  gives 
it  name  and  the  two  adjoining  ones  of  Kent  and  Hants. 

The  cows  are  not  g«od  milkers.  They  are  very  hardy,  however,  and 
do  well  on  poor  pastures.  Like  the  Devons,  they  are  all  red,  but  have 
larger  horns,  heads,  and  bones. 

There  was  an  admirable  class  of  Sussex  steers  under  two  years  at  the 
late  Smithfield  show.  Mr.  Dunnett's  one  year  ten  months  and  two 
weeks  second  prize  one  weighed  13  cwt.,  2  qrs.,  and  25  Ibs.,  and  one, 
about  a  fortnight  older,  belonging  to  Mr.  H.  Page,  of  Walmer,  Kent, 
weighed  13  cwt.  and  3  qrs.  The  heaviest  Sussex  ox  was  that  of  Mr. 
S.  Clarke,  not  quite  three  years  and  ten  months  old,  which  scaled  20 
cwt.  and  1  qr.  The  third  prize  cow,  however,  belonging  to  Mr.  W. 
Wood,  of  Crawley,  Sussex,  weighed  5  pounds  over  a  ton. 

THE  SCOTCH  POLLED  ANGUS  OR  ABERDEEN. 

This  breed  of  cattle  is  supposed  to  be  descended  from  what  were 
formerly  termed  "Angus  Doddies,"  or  Aberdeen  Hummlies.  It  is  largely 
represented  in  Aberdeenshire,  Forfarshire,  and  Kincardmeshire,  and 
their  leading  characteristics  may  be  described  as  follows : 

Their  coat  is  short,  smooth,  silky,  and  glossy,  and  almost  always  black,  though 
occasionally  some  animals  have  small  dull  white  spots,  and  still  more  rarely  some  are 
red  or  brindled.  The  head  is  tufted  with  hair,  the '-ears  are  rather  thick  and  hairy, 
the  muzzle  is  somewhat  coarse,  the  legs  are  well  boned,  and  of  moderate  length. 

Great  improvement  has  been  made  of  late  years  in  this  breed  by  care- 
ful selection,  and  very  beautiful  animals  have  been  exhibited  at  both 
breeding  and  fat-stock  shows. 

They  are  poor  milkers,  but  are  very  hardy,  docile,  large,  coming  early 
to  maturity,  and  good  breeders,  and  the  meat  is  of  excellent  quality.  In 
respect  of  wealth  and  high  quality  combined,  for  grazing  purposes  they 
can  scarcely  be  surpassed  by  any  variety  whatever,  the  Scotch  graziers 
appear  to  think,  the  only  notable  preference  on  their  part  being  for  a 
cross  between  them  and  the  Shorthorn.  Mr.  C.  Stevenson's  first  prize 
three  years  eight  months  old  steer  at  the  last  Sinithfield  show  scaled  21 
cwt.  and  23  Ibs.  This  was  by  far  the  heaviest  exhibited.  There  was, 
however,  a  great  uniformity  of  weight  between  16  cwt,  and  19  cwt. 

THE  GALLOWAY  BKEED. 

The  Galloway  breed  is  much  older  and  quite  as  highly  prized  as  the 
Angus  in  the  county  of  Galloway  and  many  parts  of  Scotland.  They 
were  formerly  partly  horned  and  partly  polled,  but  by  selection  the.t 
have  now  become  polled,  though  occasionally  some  have  small  "slugs" 
or  stumps  which  are  not  affixed  to  the  skull. 

This  breed  is  more  hardy  than  the  Angus,  and  better  for  dairy  ing 
purposes,  while  its  claims  are  also  admissible  for  wealth  as  a  grazer. 
It  is  in  fact  a  serviceable  all-around  tenant  farmer's  animal.  The  vet- 
eran McCombie,  who  stood  first  and  foremost  among  Scotch  graziers, 
wrote  as  follows  in  his  book  on  the  feeding  of  cattle : , 

I  have  grazed  the  pure  Aberdeen  and  Angus,  the  Aberdeen  and  Forth  Country 
crosses,  the  Highland,  the  Galloways,  and  what  are  termed  in  Angus  1  ho  South  Coun- 
try cattle,  the  Dutch,  and  the  Jutland.  If  store  cattle  of  the  Aberdeen  aud  Angus  breeds 
out  of  our  best  herds  can  be  secured,  I  believe  no  other  breed  will  pay  the  grazier 
more  money  in  the  north  for  the  same  value  of  keep. 


»  THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  63 

Mr.  McCombie  considered  that  the  Galloways  "on  poor  land  are  un- 
rivaled except  perhaps  by  the  small  Highlanders,"  but  he  did  not  deem- 
them  so  easily  finished  as  pure  Aberdeens  or  cross-bred  cattle. 

The  pure  Galloway  is  usually  black ;  the  eye  is  rather  dull  and  sleepy ;  the  ear  is 
thick  and  very  hairy;  the  back  is  straight;  the  head  is  covered  with  a  semi-spheri- 
cal knob,  tufted  with  hair;  the  legs  are  short  and  strong." 

HIGHLAND   CATTLE. 

As  the  name  denotes,  this  breed  is  native  to  the  West  Highlands  of 
Scotland ;  they  were  formerly  known  as  North  Argyleshire  Battle.  The 
characteristics  may  be  described  as  follows  : 

Their  stature  is  usually  somewhat  small.  They  are  clothed  with  a  thick  skin,hav 
ing  abundance  of  long,  glossy,  and  shaggy  hair,  indicating  hardness  of  constitution  in 
the  highest  degree.  This  thick  coat  is  a  protection  against  the  atmosphere  of  winter 
and  from  flies  in  summer.  The  color  varies,  some  animals  being  black,  others  red, 
dun,  yellow,  and  brindled  (red  and  black).  The  head  is  short,  and  has  a  profusion  of 
long  shaggy  and  curly  hair  coming  down  below  the  eyes.  The  muzzle  is  fine,  and 
the  nose  slightly  turned  up.  • 

The  eyes  are  prominent,  and  have  a  quick,  piercing  glance.  The  horns  are  wide 
apart,  long,  curved,  and  pointed ;  the  body  is  straight,  thick,  very  deep,  compact, 
and  well  formed. 

The  legs  are  short  and  extremely  muscular. 

They  are  celebrated  for  their  grazing  properties,  the  meat  being  of 
the  finest  quality,  and  comes  down  to  the  very  heels.  It  commands  the 
highest  prices  in  the  principal  Eqgiish  markets.  For  dairy  purposes 
they  do  not  rank  so  highly,  because  the  milk,  though  good  in  quality, 
is  deficient  in  quantity.  They  are  extremely  hardy,  vigorous,  quick, 
and  active,  and  capable  of  enduring  both  the  damp  and  cold  boisterous 
climate  of  the  Highlands.  They  thrive  admirably  on  low  lands,  where 
they  are  generally  fattened,  and  are  in  great  demand  in  England  for 
grazing.  Their  hardy  nature  does  not  require  that  they  should  be 
housed,  and  they  will  consume  and  thrive  on  coarse  pasture,  which 
sheep  and  many  other  kinds  of  cattle  would  leave  untouched. 

It  is  best  to  graze  them  for  a  time  before  putting  them  to  fat,  as  they 
require  being  gradually  accustomed  to  yards  or  boxes.  Of  late  years 
much  care  and  attention  has  been  paid  to  improving  the  breed,  and  fre- 
quently handsome  animals  are  exhibited  at  fat-stock  exhibitions  ;  whilst 
both  on  their  native  hills,  where  their  appearance  is  somewhat  wild, 
and  afterwards  when  being  grazed  in  pastures,  their  picturesque  beauty 
is  always  highly  appreciated. 

The  attributes  of  this  breed  may  be  summed  up  as  a  combination  of 
great  hardiness  with  splendid  quality  of  meat. 

AYRSHIRE  CATTLE. 

This  breed  takes  its  name  from  the  county  of'  Ayr,  and  possesses  the 
following  characteristics : 

Their  color  is  usually  red  or  brown  and  white,  In  large  patches ;  or  all  red  or 
brown,  and  sometimes  black  and  white. 

The  horns  are  fine,  curve  upwards,  and  axe  placed  on  wide  apart  at  their  base.  The 
neck  is  straight  from  the  head  towards  the  top  of  the  shoulders,  which  are  very  thin 
on  the  top  ;  the  back  is  straight. 

The  body  becomes  larger,  both  in  width  and  depth,  as  it  approaches  the  hind  quar- 
ters. The  tail  is  long,  fine,  and  bushy  at  the  end.  Tke  legs  are  short  and  snail  in 
the  bone.  The  eye  ie  mild  and  the  udder  very  large. 

Its  origin  is  not  thoroughly  known,  but  for  a  considerable  time 
breeders  have  taken  pains,  by  selection  and  judicious  breeding,  to  in- 


C4  CATTLE  AND -DAIRY  FARMING. 

crease  the  properties  for  which  Ayrshire  cattle  are  famous,  and  which 
are  in  a  degree  indigenous. 

These  animals  are  so  hardy  that  they  bear  almost  any  variation  of 
climate,  thriving  well  on  high-lying  districts  without  losing  their  milk- 
ing properties,  whilst  a  milder  atmosphere  and  rich  pasturage  suit  them 
perfectly. 

Their  great  attribute* is  their  excellent  milk,  which  is  good  in  quality 
and  extraordinarily  large  in  quantity.  It  is  claimed  that  a  cow  of  this 
breed  will  yield  as  much  milk  for  food  consumed  as  any  member  of  the 
bovine  species. 

Ayrshire  cows  are  very  popular  in  their  native  county  and  through 
out  the  dairying  districts  of  Scotland,  partly  because  they  suit  the  sys- 
tems of  farming  adopted  much  better  than  heavier  cows,  such  as  Shorfc- 
horns,  would  do,  for  the  feeding  is  very  much  restricted  to  the  arable 
portion  of  the  farm,  the  land  being  kept  down  to  artificial  grasses  two 
years  that  dairy  cows  may  be  kept.  The  chief  objection  against  Ayr- 
shires  in  England  is  that  when  the  cow  has  ceased  milking  it  is  worth 
very  little  for  grazing  purposes. 

JERSEYS  AND  GUERNSEYS. 

The  same  objection  as  the  foregoing  applies  in  a  still  greater  degree 
to  the  Jersey.  Still  there  are  pastures  with  short  bites  in  the  south  of 
England  for  which  Jersey  herds  are  adopted  even  by  tenant  farmers. 
As  a  fancy  animal  for  noblemen's  parks,  and  to  adorn  the  grounds  of 
our  country  gentry,  Jerseys  are  very  much  extending  themselves  every- 
where. They  are  not  only  affluent  milkers,  but  the  proportion  of  cream 
to  milk  is  large,  and  the  yields  of  butter  realized  from  some  are  remark- 
able. A  great  many  good  herds  are  to  be  found  in  Hants,  and  indeed 
all  along  the  southwestern  coast,  also  in  Essex  and  the  home  counties. 

The  Jersey  cow  is  too  well  known  for  its  neatness  of  form,  slender 
frame,  its  deer-like  head,  and  its  gentleness  to  require  further  description. 

The  cows  of  the  sister  isle,  Guernsey,  are  celebrated  for  yielding  more 
butter  than  even  Jerseys.  They  are  also  larger  in  size  and  more  hardy, 
still  they  seldom  yield  carcasses  to  the  satisfaction  of  English  renting 
farmers  after  their  milking  season  is  over.  The  same  parts  of  the  King- 
dom where  Jerseys  are  found  most  numerous  patronize  the  yellow  Chan- 
nel Islands  breed. 

The  best  English  show-yard  herds  of  Guernseys  are  probably  from 
Hants  and  Devon.  In  propagation  the  Guernsey  in  England  seems 
naturally  to  develop  into  more  grazing  character,  and  detract  somewhat 
from  fine  quality,  or  at  least  what  would  be  considered  so  in  the  eyes 
of  an  island  judge. 

Jerseys  and  Guernseys  were  for  a  long  time  accepted  in  England 
under  the  general  title  of  u  Alderneys,"  the  probability  being  that  they 
were  first  introduced  from  the  island  of  that  name.  It  is  only  lately 
that  the  difference  existing  between  them  has  become  generally  known. 

In  both  islands  the  entry  of  foreign  stock  for  breeding  purposes  is 
prohibited.  The  law  enforcing  this  has  been  long  in  existence,  and 
most  rigidly  observed ;  this  accounts  for  the  purity  of  the  breeds  ill 
these  islands. 

The  animals  are  narrow  between  the  shoulders,  have  short  smooth 
coats,  and  the  eyes  have  a  mild,  docile  expression.  They  are  healthy, 
breed  well,  and  last  long.  The  principal  malady  to  which  they  are  sub- 
ject is  milk  fever,  which,  if  prompt  measures  are  not  taken,  proves  a 
sure  destroyer. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  65 

WELSH  CATTLE. 

The  Welsh  Eunts,  as  they  are  sometimes  called,  may  be  considered  as 
an  aboriginal  breed,  but  they  have  been  found  to  vary  very  much  in 
quality.  This  arose  from  sufficient  care  not  having  been  taken  formerly 
in  selecting  them  for  breeding. 

They  are  apt  to  be  somewhat  ragged  in  outline,  though  fairly  good 
specimens  are  occasionally  found,  especially  of  late,  as  more  attention 
has  been  given  to  form  and  quality. 

They  may  be  denominated  a  middle-horned  breed,  rather  inclined  to 
long.  The  horns  are  wide-spreading,  white,  tipped  with  black,  and  curl- 
ing upwards. 

The  color  of  the  animal  is  usually  black,  and  some  hare  a  little  white. 

They  are  good  for  dairy  purposes,  but  are  usually  too  strong  in  bone 
and  hide  for  grazing  profitably.  Still,  in  the  hands  of  a  few  leading 
breeders,  they  have  become  so  much  refined  of  their  coarseness  that  they 
begin  to  make  an  impression  at  the  Smithfield  Club  show,  and  last  De- 
cember Mr.  Owen  Thomas,  of  Anglesey,  could  claim  to  have  the  heavi- 
est animal  in  the  show  with  his  nearly  four  years  old  ox,  which  weighed 
22  cwt,,  1  qr.,  G  Ibs. 

The  Welsh  Cattle-Book,  published  in  1874,  gives  the  characteristics  of 
this  breed  most  fully. 

KERRY  CATTLE. 

.  TheKerry  is  the  only  native  Irish  breed  worthy  of  mention.  The  cows 
are  good  milkers  for  their  size ;  from  the  ease  with  which  they  are  kept 
in  a  limited  space  they  are  of  ten  called  the  poor  man's  cow.  They  are 
omall,  handsome,  and  very  docile  5  the  head  is  fine  and  small,  the  eye 
quick  and  animated.  Frequently  the  animals  do  not  exceed  40  inches 
in  height. 

The  foregoing  succinct  and  detailed  references  to  the  various  breeds 
of  cattle  furnish  general  descriptions  that  may  be  unreservedly  accepted, 
the  printed  notes  being  those  made  by  the  current  president  of  the  Royal 
Agricultural  Society  of  England,  Sir  Braudreth  Gibbs,  who  has  had 
forty  years'  official  connection  with  the  Royal  Society  and  the  Smith- 
field  Club,  whilst  the  written  account  has  been  specially  compiled  for 
me  by  Mr.  Joseph  Darby,  an  author  of  works  on  cattle,  sheep,  and  dairy 
subjects,  well  known  and  esteemed  in  this  country. 

Herewith  I  inclose  the  various  items  of  information  which  I  have  ob- 
tained in  response  to  letters  addressed  to  several  of  the  leading  stock- 
owners  of  the  British  Islands,  and  from  personal  visits  made  by  myself, 
especially  in  Essex  and  Norfolk.  I  shall,  however,  wish  to  make  the 
following  preliminary  remarks  on  the  whole  subject : 

SELECTION  OF  FOREIGN  CATTLE  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

In  reference  to  the  assertion  that  there  are  only  ten  or  eleven  breeds 
of  cattle  in  the  United  States,  where  there  is  room  for  at  least  thirty, 
and  that  England  possesses  twenty  breeds  and  France  fifteen  breeds 
and  other  European  countries  in  like  proportion,  I  would  observe  that 
whilst  doubtless  some  additional  breeds  to  those  at  present  in  the  United 
States  may  be  advantageously  introduced,  yet  the  cattle  now  in  the 
United  States  are  selections  from  the  best  breeds  of  Europe,  where  stock- 
breeders are  reducing  the  number  of  their  breeds,  so  that  those  best 
suited  for  the  production  of  meat  and  milk  are  crowding  out  the  inferior 
H.  Ex.  51 5 


66  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

breeds  very  rapidly.  Thus  the  restriction  of  breeds  to  small  numbers 
infers  the  "  survival  of  the  fittest,"  and  is  indicative  rather  of  agricult- 
ural progress  than  the  reverse.  For  the  future  it  may  be  forecast  that 
the  European  breeds  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  pigs  will  notably  diminish  in 
numbers  and  correspondingly  improve  in  value. 

The  paragraph  referring  to  imported  breeds  producing  in  their  new 
homes,  when  suitably  located  and  managed,  offspring  superior  to  that 
produced  in  their  original  homes  can  only  be  accepted  with  reserve,  as 
although  numerous  instances  of  great  breeding  successes  are  established 
in  the  records  of  the  United  States,  that  result  maybe  attributed  to  the 
fact  of  the  imported  cattle  and  pigs  being  generally  picked  specimens, 
selected  for  their  excellence,  whereby  their  progeny  are  put  out  of  com- 
parison with  the  more  ordinary  stock  from  which  specimens  are  common- 
ly seen  at  the  shows  of  the  United  Kingdom. 

I  am  advised  by  eminent  authorities  that  however  grand  may  be  the 
American  results  attained  in  the  case  of  Jersey  cattle  &c.,  yet  it  is 
thought  to  be  advisable  to  replenish  stock  by  returning  to  the  original 
homes  of  the  breeds,  whilst  I  note  also  in  a  report  relative  to  Shorthorns 
from  our  consul  at  Leeds,  that  buyers  are  recommended  to  revisit  the 
Teeswater  districts,  where  the  grand  old  Durham  stock,  renowned  for  its 
size,  good  constitution,  and  splendid  milk-bag,  exists  in  large  numbers, 
and  from  which  the  refined,  improved  Shorthorn  has  been  carefully 
bred. 

So  also  in  respect  to  French  breeds  I  feel  assured  there  is  a  wide  scope 
for  importation  of  superior  cattle  from  their  native  districts,  from  which, 
the  best  specimens  being  selected,  itmay  be  expected  the  American  con- 
tinent will  soon  produce  a  higher  general  level  of  excellence  in  such 
new  breeds  than  could  be  found  in  France.  Besides  the  Norman,  Brit- 
tany, Flemish,  and  Charolaise  breeds,  there  are  quite  half  a  dozen 
French  breeds  of  cattle  which  probably  might  be  advantageously  intro- 
duced into  the  United  States. 

Your  attention  is  called  to  inclosure  "  Notes  on  French  Live  Stock," 
from  the  official  French  catalogues  of  the  Paris  Exhibition  of  1878, 
with  illustrations  added  which  do  not  appear  in  the  original  catalogues ; 
also  to  the  critical  report  of  the  last  Paris  cattle-show  (February,  1883), 
written  by  Mr.  Kains- Jackson  and  published  in  the  London  Times  and 
the  Field  (inclosure  2),*  which  gives  the  most  complete  description 
ever  published  here. 

PUBLICATIONS  CONCERNING  BRITISH  CATTLE. 

The  detailed  information  sought  as  to  the  costs  and  methods  of  ex- 
portation, the  critical  descriptions  of  the  several  breeds,  their  relative 
numbers  and  relative  production  for  n*eat  or  milk  would  require,  even 
in  a  most  condensed  form,  a  volume  of  several  hundred  pages.  Such  a 
.work  would  not  be  difficult  to  compile  from  existing  materials  and  from 
the  special  supplementary  details  now  obtained,  especially  as  in  recent 
years  great  activity  has  been  shown  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  in 
supplying  authentic  matter  for  the  compilation  of  stud  and  herd  books. 

The  Suffolk  Stud-Book,  the  Carthorse  Stud-Book,  and  the  Jersey 
Herd-Book  have  lately  appeared,  and  now  the  Devon  Herd-Book,  the 
Cleveland  Bay  Stud-Book,  the  Hackney  Stud-Book,  the  Pig-Breeder's 
Stud-Book,  and  other  similar  works  are  in  course  of  preparation. 

The  Shorthorn,  Hereford,  Scotch,  Polled,  Eed  Polled  Ayrshire,  and 
Welsh  Black  Cattle  Herd-Books  have  been  established  for  several  years, 

*See  Supplement.- 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  67 

and  each  of  these  may  be  readily  obtained,  and  should  be  consulted 
as  affording  the  most  valuable  information  extant  on  the  various  subjects. 
Careful  illustrations  of  the  various  breeds,  critical  notes  on  their  stand- 
ard points  in  these  works  convey  a  correct  knowledge  of  the  animals, 
and  nearly  all  the  written  information  that  individual  reports  may  contain 
will  have  been  in  most  cases  drawn  from  the  sources  above  indicated. 

Herewith  I  forward  (inclosure  3)  a  useful  small  dictionary  volume, 
by  the  Kev.  Holt  Beever  of  the  several  tribes  of  Shorthorns.  I  also  for- 
ward as  a  most  successful  work  (inclosure  4)  a  large  folio  volume  on 
the  Cattle  of  Great  Britain,  containing  several  illustrations  and  with  de- 
scriptions written  by  authors  selected  for  their  knowledge  of  the  sub- 
jects; and  also  a  volume  (inclosure  5)  entitled  "The  History  of  Polled 
Aderdeen  or  Angus  Cattle,"  by  Messrs.  James  Macdonald  and  James 
Sinclair,  which  is  a  valuable  and  most  complete  work,  exhaustive  of  the 
subject. 

In  the  volumes  of  the  Eoyal  Agricultural  Society  of  England,  since 
1840,  are  found  the  Prize  County  Histories  of  the  country,  in  which  are 
given  an  account  of  the  geological  subsoil,  the  surface  soil,  rotation  of 
crops,  pastures,  elevation  and  aspect  of  the  land,  of  breeds  of  stock  and 
methods  of  feeding  and  rearing  them.  Such  histories  were  written  in 
response  to  prizes  offered  by  the  Eoyal  Society. 

The  Farmers'  Hand-Book  (inclosure  G)  herewith  forwarded  contains 
notes  on  the  Koyal  Society,  the  Smithtield  Club,  and  various  other 
leading  societies.  Here  may  be  observed  that  the  several  prize  lists  of 
the  great  agricultural  shows  give  the  names  and  addresses  of  the  chief 
stock-breeders  in  the  country,  although  exceptionally  some  of  the  most 
renowned  breeders  do  not  exhibit,  as  their  stock  enjoys  celebrity  for  its 
excellence  that  commands  the  highest  prices  at  home  and  abroad. 

PEIZE  VS.   ORDINARY  STOCK. 

In  the  matter  of  prize  cattle,  whether  for  size,  weight,  quality  of  flesh, 
milk,  wool,  smallness  of  offal,  &c.,  it  is  well  to  remember  they  are 
always  exceptionally  chosen  animals,  reared  and  fed  under  favorable  cir- 
cumstances, and  are  not  representatives  of  the  total  number  of  farmers' 
stock  which  is  not  usually  of  a  pedigree  character.  For  this  reason  the 
weight  of  meat,  or  the  quantity  given  of  milk,  have  to  be  regarded  sim- 
ply as  instances  of  special  rather  than  of  general  excellence.  Still,  I 
may  make  comment  that  the  differences  between  prize  results  and  ordi- 
nary results  are  not  enough  to  induce  the  ordinary  farmer  or  dairyman 
to  purchase  stock  at  fancy  prices  5  and  the  same  argument  applies  to 
purchases  from  abroad.  However,  when  the  pbject  is  to  establish  herds 
or  flocks  of  repute,  only  pedigree  stock  should  be  bought. 

GEOLOGICAL  CHARACTER  OF  THE  BRITISH  ISLES. 

The  geological  character  of  the  British  islands,  their  insular  climate, 
and  the  small  altitude  of  the  land  are  best  described  in  special  works  on 
the  subjects,  and  agriculturists  afford  but  little  information.  The  up- 
land pastures  and  what  are  called  mountain  districts  are  inconsiderable 
in  comparison  with  the  lowland  grazing  districts,  valleys,  and  marsh 
lands  of  only  50  to  500  feet  above  sea-level ;  and  of  Great  Britain  gen- 
erally it  may  be  said  that  the  various  breeds  of  stock  may  be  changed 
from  district  to  district  without  losing  their  character.  Shorthorns 
thrive  everywhere,  yet  the  north  of  England  well  holds  its  character  as 
the  home  of  the  race.  Devons  fattened  in  Norfolk  often  surpass  those 


68  CATTLE  AND  DAIEY  FARMING. 

fed  in  their  native  connty,  and  Cotswold  sheep  also  thrive  in  various 
counties.  Southdowns,  Oxfordshire  downs,  and  in  fact  nearly  all  the 
breeds  of  stock  in  the  British  Islands  allow  of  interchange,  district  with 
district,  without  losing  their  character 5  from  which  the  fact  may  be 
inferred  that  the  diversities  of  altitude  and  climate  are  insufficient  to 
affect  stock  materially  in  Great  Britain. 

THE  SANDRINGHAM  HERDS. 

The  inclosure  7  is  a  return- with  which  Mr.  Samuel  Beck,  agent  to 
the  Prince  of  Wales,  favored  me.  It  will  be  observed  that  all  the  stock 
are  managed,  pedigree  Shorthorns,  Alderneys,  Black  Polls,  and  other 
cattle,  in  a  manner  that  a  tenant  farmer  might  profitably  follow.  Of 
this  I  had  the  opportunity  of  assuring  myself  by  a  visit  of  inspection 
which  I  made  in  the  middle  of  the  present  month,  devoting 'several 
hours  to  a  survey  of  the  farms,  their  buildings,  stock  and  general  char- 
acter, and  being  favored  with  personal  explanations  from  Mr.  Beck,  and 
from  his  son,  Mr.  Frank  Beck,  whose  minute  acquaintance  with  every 
agricultural  detail  was  of  the  greatest  advantage  to  me.  The  parade 
of  the  pedigree  stock  in  the  several  exercise-yards,  and  the  groups 
grazing  in  the  open  pastures  formed  a  "royal  show"  in  private  of  the 
most  interesting  character,  being  free  from  the  turmoil  and  crowded 
surroundings  under  which  stock  are  commonly  seen  at  agricultural 
shows. 

The  herds  of  Shorthorns,  at  Sandririgham,  are  located  upon  two  dis- 
tinct farms  at  Babingley  and  at  Wolferton,  2  miles  apart.  The  one 
herd  of  the  u  Bates  and  Knightly"  blood  is  kept  separate  from  the  herd 
of  the  "Booth"  blood,  and  admirers  of  either  have  thus  an  easy  oppor- 
tunity of  noting  the  respective  points. 

Some  years  ago  the  following  words  were  written  by  a  competent 
critic  of  Norfolk  farming : 

It  is  nothing  "but  a  plain  truth  to  say  that  Norfolk  farmers  needed  a  sound  lead  to 
follow  in  the  matter  of  live-stock  management,  and  there  is  one  to  be  found  at  Sand- 
ringham,  thanks  to  the  management  of  the  Prince  of  Wales. 

The  bulls  of  the  Wolferton  herd  include  the  Admiral,  Baron  Wolfer- 
tou,  Beauchamp,  Denmark,  Dereham,  Downkam,  Dunkirk,  Fortis,  Fra- 
ternas,  Gamester,  Marias,  Ponsapo,  Pluto,  Eoyston,  Samson,  and  Vis- 
count. Their  ages  are  from  twelve  months  to  six  years.  Amongst  the 
cows  are  fifteen  Diadems,  the  offspring  of  Mr.  Fisher's  bull  (Fawsley 
Prince,  31,150,  and  Diamond,  by  the  Chieftain,  20,942).  Amongst  the 
Babingley  herd  is  the  bull  Babingley  Duke,  42,680,  with  the  best  of  Mr. 
Bates's  blood.  Through  all  the  mazes  of  the  Wild  Eyes  family,  dam 
*  Blythesome  Eyes,  sire  Marquis  of  Oxford  2d,  37,055,  the  bull  Duke  of 
Norfolk,  calved  June  13, 1880,  and  bred  at  Sandringham,  is  by  the  Earl 
of  Bectlve's  Duke  of  Underly  3d,  38,196,  and  Fuchsia  of  Hilhurst. 

Considering  the  size  of  the  farms,  their  carrying  a  pedigree  herd  of 
about  30  bulls  and  80  cows,  besides  numerous  store-stock  of  Devons, 
Black  Polls,  Highlanders,  and  dairy  cows,  they  bear  witnesses  to  econ- 
omy of  management  and  productive  capabilities  which  are  astonishiog 
in  an  estate  that  was  "nowhere"  twenty-five  years  ago,  and  which  has 
since  1863  been  made  into  a  most  picturesque  domain  and  fertile  land. 
Even  the  miles  of  evergreen  trees,  mostly  Scotch  firs,  giving  Sandring- 
ham a  moorish  appearance,  were  planted  by  Mr.  Beck,  and  in  the  very 
hot  season  of  1868. 

The  farm  buildings  were  mostly  the  old  farm  structures,  merely  kept 
in  good  repair,  and  here  and  there  improved  by  economical  additions. 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  69 

I  saw  no  costly  outlay  anywhere,  neither  in  barns,  sheds,  stables,  or 
fences  at  Sandringham. 

Many  of  the  animals  of  the  Prince  of  Wales's  herd  are  obtainable  at 
fixed  prices  that  are  so  moderate  that  any  farmer  may  invest  in  them, 
and,  compared  with  the  prices  asked  in  similar  first-class  herds,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  Sandringham,  as  a  source  of  good  Shorthorn  blood,  is  meant  to 
be  a  fertilizing  stream  for  farmers  at  home  and  abroad.  The  "  Diadem  " 
strain  is  a  valuable  one  for  its  milking  qualities,  some  of  the  cows  giv- 
ing two  gallons  when  out  on  grass.  The  herd  of  cows  out  in  the  open 
Wolferton  marshes  were  looking,  on  the  17th  of  January,  all  in  healthy 
condition,  noticeably  so  considering  the  slight  attack  from  foot  and 
mouth  disease  from  which  all  had  suffered.  The  Babingley  herd,  only  2 
miles  distant,  had  entirely  escaped.  The  hardihood  and  general  con- 
dition of  both  herds  witnessed  to  the  good  stamina  of  the  stock,  and 
whilst  the  Babingley  farm  is  in  soil,  situation,  and  general  character  only 
a  good  average  one,  the  Wolferton  low  levels,  wind-swept  and  marsh- 
musty,  are  as  exposed  and  cold  as  can  be  any  quarters  to  which  the 
stock  are  likely  to  be  moved. 

The  Sandringham  Shorthorn  herds  represent  the  best  of  the  blood  in 
the  kingdom.  Its  stock  is  drawn  from  the  herds  of  the  Duke  of  Man- 
chester, the  Earls  of  Dunrnore,  Fevershana,  Bective,  of  Lord  Fitzhard- 
inge,  of  Colonel  Kiugscote,  and  of  Messrs.  Bowly,  Darling,  Hamer,  Sa- 
nmda,  Sartoris  and  Tracey,  as  representing  the  Bates  blood  j  whilst 
the  Booth  blood  is  represented  by  the  herds  of  Her  Majesty  the  Queen, 
the  Rev.  J.  1ST.  Micklethians,  and  Messrs.  Hugh  Ayliner,  H.  D.  Barclay, 
A.  H.  Browne  and  J.  Gamble. 

The  pastures  are  often  of  that  good  grazing  character  called  "  bullock- 
pastures  "  of  tjie  old  mixed  grasses  and  adapted  to  fattening  stock.  In 
this  direction  the  Prince  of  \Yales  has  often  been  successful,  and  there 
are  now  in  the  yards  some  Devon,  cross-bred  Black  Polls,  and  two  High- 
land cattle  that  may  be  expected,  in  1884,  to  be  in  the  front  rank  at  fat 
stock  shows. 

From  the  responses  to  my  circulars  requesting  information  I  extract 
the  following : 

THE  DUFFRYN  HERD  OF  SHORTHORNS. 

Mr.  E.  Stratton  writes  relative  to  his  "DuffrynHerd  of  Shorthorns " 
(inclosure  8) : 

History  of  ihc  Stratton  herd. — My  herd  was  founded  by  my  father  in  1837,  by  the 
purchase  of  Phceuix  (6,290),  which  had  been  bred  by  Mr.  Bellamy  from  the  stock  of 
C.  Colling,  and  was  the  sire  of  Moss  Rose,  calved  in  1838,  whose  progeny  may  be  said 
to  have  made  the  reputation  the  Stratton  Shorthorns  may  claim.  It  has  been  com- 
puted that  they  have  won  not  less  than  £10,000  iu  prizes.  The  dam  of  Moss  Rose 
was  a  cow  of  good  Shorthorn  character  and  an  excellent  milker.  She  was  purchased 
in  the  market  and  her  pedigree  was  unknown.  The  herd  has  always  been  managed 
with  a  view  to  produce  stock  combining  good  milking  and  feeding  qualities;  with 
what  success  the  records  of  the  Smithiield  Club,  the  London  Dairy  Show,  the  Dairy 
Classes  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Shows  attest.  At  the  Smithiield  shows  they  have 
won  more  champion  prizes  than  all  other  Shorthorn  tribes  put  together. 

In  my  father's  time  the  herd  was  kept  for  many  years  on  the  Wiltshire  Hills;  my 
brother's  herd  at  Alton  Priors  was  also  kept  at  a  very  considerable  elevation,  some 
700  feet  above  the  sea,  and  proved  remarkably  hardy.  They  have  always  been  bred 
with  a  view  to  hardihood,  and  many  of  the  heifers  and  late  calving  cows  have  in- 
variably been  kept  in  the  open  fields  all  through  the  winter  with  only  straw  or  rough 
hay  besides  the  grass  of  the  pasture  to  eat.  These  Shorthorns  are  as  hardy  as  any 
domestic  breed,  and  when  Shorthorns  have  been  objected  to,on  the  ground  of  delicacy, 
they  have  become  so  from  the  system  of  " in-and-in  breeding"  largely  practiced  by 
breeders  in  this  country. 


70  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

My  herd  is  now,  for  the  most  part,  kept  at  the  Duffryn,  Newport,  Monmouthshire, 
where  the  soil  varies  from  gravel  to  old  red  sandstone.  The  cattle  do  well  on  either. 
Heifers  are  generally  brought  to  calve  at  about  thirty-three  months;  bull  calves  are 
generally  allowed  to  suck  their  dams,  whilst  heifer  calves  are  taken  from  the  cows  and 
reared  with  only  a  little  milk,  as  it  is  considered  that  too  generous  feeding  is  injuri- 
ous to  the  milking  qualities. 

Milking  qualities. — I  can  give  no  details  as.  to  the  annual  yield  in  milk  per  cow 
per  annum,  having  never  kept  any  record,  but  Sir  H.  H.  Hassey  Vivian,  Bart.,  M.  P., 
has  two  cows  of  "Stratton"  blood  that  have  given  overljOOO  gallons  of  milk  within  the 
year. 

Size  and  weight. — As  to  size,  two  of  my  biggest  cows,  in  good,  fair  condition,  I  find  to 
measure  as  follows:  Chloe,  girth,  7  feet  4  inches;  length,  7  feet  5  inches ;  Heather, 
girth,  7  feet  5  inches ;  length,  7  feet  7  inches. 

I  have  had  a  heifer  increase  as  much  as  673  pounds  in  twelve  months. 

As  to  relative  live  and  dead  weight,  two  of  my  champion  Smithfield  heifers  have 
been  as  follows:  Icicle,  alive,  19  cwt.,  9  pounds  ;  'dead,  1,674  pounds.  Wild  Flower, 
alive,  17  cwt.,  2  quarters,  9  pounds ;  dead,  1,420  pounds. 

I  do  not  consider  the  cows  fully  matured  until  six  years  old. 

Shorthorn  crosses. — Shorthorns  are  far  superior  to  all  other  breeds  for  crossing  pui  - 
poses,  and  it  is  a  notable  fact  that  two  or  three  crosses  of  good,  pure  blood  upon  any 
inferior  nondescript  stock  will  often  stamp  the  progeny  as  pure-bred  Shorthorns,  and, 
for  all  intents  and  purposes,  they  are  in  no  way  inferior. 

The  champion  shorthorns  of  Smithfield  for  many  years  past  have  none  of  them  been 
eligible  to  the  Herd-Book,  though  all  by  pure-bred  bulls ;  thus  illustrating  their 
efficiency  in  crossing  purposes. 

RESPONSES  FROM  VARIOUS  QUARTERS. 

A  note  from  Sir  John  B.  Lawes,  Bart.,  from  Bothamsted,  Herts,  re- 
fers to  the  district  as  one  chiefly  devoted  to  corn  growing,  amd  having 
no  special  breed  of  cattle  or  sheep.  (Inclosure  9.) 

I  may  here  observe  that  in  recent  years  Sir  John  has  laid  down  many 
acres  of  his  estate  in  grass,  and  that  in  the  neighborhood  a  considerable 
herd  of  stock,  cattle  and  sheep,  of  diverse  breeds,  is  kept,  maintaining 
the  special  characteristics  of  the  districts  from  which  they  have  been 
changed. 

Somerset  Devons. — Mr.  T.  H.  Eisdon,  of  Somerset  (inclosnre  10),  for- 
wards a  valuable  condensation  of  information  as  to  Somerset  Devon 
cattle : 

At  Washford  the  mean  temperature  is  50°.  It  is  as  high  as  66°  in  the  summer  and 
the  winter  mean  is  not  below  34°. 

The  girth  of  Mr.  Risdon's  Devon  cows  is  7  feet  6  inches  ;  of  bulls,  7  feet  6  to  8  inches, 
thus  competing  with  Shorthorns,  except  that  the  latter  have  greater  length. 

The  average  yield  of  milk  is  1,800  quarts  including  time  of  suckling.  The  breed  is 
regarded  as  native  to  the  soil  and  pure  blood  has  been  recorded  for  over  one  hundred 
years.  By  interchange  of  sires  in-and-in  breeding  ia  avoided  as  much  as  possible. 
Store- stock  are  Housed,  January  to  April,  inclusive.  The  cattle  are  fattened  in 
watered  meadows  on  grass  grown  after  hay-making  until  the  end  of  October,  when 
they  are  housed  in  covered  pens.  The  breed  are  bred  and  reared  on  much  higher 
•  altitudes,  with  corresponding  lower  temperature,  than  at  Mr.  Risdon's  homestead. 

The  average  live  weight  is  from  13  cwt.  for  cow  to  17  cwt.  for  bull. 

Shorthorn  Gwynns. — The  report  from  Bedford  (inclosure  11)  from 
Messrs.  J.  and  F.  Howard,  quotes  Shorthorns  (Gwynn  tribe)  as  mature 
at  3  years.  Their  live  weight  averages  from  14  to  16  cwt.  The  live 
weight  of  fat  stock  is,  for  the  cow,  18  cwt. ;  bull,  23  to  26  cwt. ;  ox,  16  to 
18  cwt.  From  the  milk,  16  quarts  daily ;  the  week's  butter  is  8  pounds. 

Norfolk  Red  Polls. — From  Stanton,  near  Harleston,  Norfolk,  I  was 
favored  with  a  report  from  Mr.  Alfred  Taylor  (inclosure  12),  whose  herd  of 
Bed-Polled  cattle  is  typical  and  of  high  excellence.  The  farm  in  South 
Norfolk  is  114  feet  above  sea  level?  upon  a  clay  and  gravel  subsoil,  and 
the  pasturage  is  of  permanent  grass,  or  of  clover  and  rye  grass  sown 
with  arable  rotation.  Accessible  shelter  is  provided  in  winter  adjoining 
the  meadows  on  which  the  cows  are  pastured.  Mr.  Taylor  considers  he 


THE' UNITED  KINGDOM.  71 

can  keep  three  Bed-Polled  cattle  where  only  two  Shorthorns  would  find 
sufficient  food,  and  having  kept  both  breeds  at  the  same  time  and  on 
the  same  farm  he  bases  his  opinion  on  experience. 

The  constitution  of  the  Eed  Polls  is  very  hardy.  Fat  steers  from  two 
and  one-half  to  three  years  old  weigh  60  stone,  and  upwards  (840  pounds), 
when  fed  in  the  ordinary  way  on  roots,  hay,  and  cake.  This  is  the  dead 
weight  of  ordinary  fat  stock;  and  such  as  are  "ripened"  for  the  Christ- 
mas shows  have  weighed  1,164  pounds  (see  page  7  of  inclosed  pam- 
phlet). 

The  meat  of  the  Bed-Polled  cattle  is  excellent,  and  has  a  larger  -pro- 
portion of  lean  when  compared  with  some  other  breeds. 

Mr.  Taylor,  in  referring  to  the  several  particulars  given  in  the  above 
pamphlet,  accepts  them  as  correct  statements,  and  I  may  add  that  the 
writer  is  well  recognized  as  a  competent  critic  of  the  Bed-Polled  cattle, 
and  is  the  editor  of  its  Herd-Book. 

The  popularity  of  this  breed  has  rapidly  increased  in  its  own  district 
and  abroad,  so  much  so  that  breeders  are  restricting  their  sales  in  order 
to  obtain  sufficient  numbers  at  home. 

The  Lofft>8uffQlk  Eed  Polls.-r-ThQ  herd  of  Bed  Polls  belonging  to  Mr. 
Lofft  of  Troston,  near  Bury  St.  Edmunds,  Suffolk,  is  of  great  repute, 
and  gave  its  owner  the  confidence  to  challenge  the  breeders  of  Scotch 
Black  Polls  to  show  a  group  of  five  animals  in  competition  with  five 
Bed  Polls.  However,  the  comparison  has  not  yet  been  publicly  made, 
and  the  five  "  Doddies"  shown  by  Mr.  McCombie  at  Paris,  in  1878,  are 
still  recognized  as  the  best  group  ever  exhibited.  The  farm  of  Mr. 
Lofft  is  40  to  70  feet  above  sea  level,  and  the  range  of  temperature  in 
1883  was  48.6  degrees,  the  rainfall  26.19  inches.  The  soil  is  a  mixed 
drift,  very  unequally  distributed  on  a  chalky  subsoil,  or  drift  clay,  sand, 
and  gravel.  Old  meadows,  varying  greatly  in  different  seasons  from  the 
natural  pasturage,  and  artificial  pasturage  of  clover,  sainfoin,  and  rye 
grass  is  made,  principally  for  horse  and  cattle  keep.  Mr.  Lofft  has  also 
used  largely  gorse  for  horses  and  cattle,  and  gives  his  stock  in  small 
quantities  chicory,  Jerusalem  artichokes,  prickly  comfrey,  &c. 

The  cow  stock  are  taken  in  at  night  as  soon  as  white  frosts  begin  to 
appear  in  autumn,  and  are  tied  up  in  a  large  and  lofty  barn,  but  during 
the  day  are  turned  out  to  graze,  or  for  air  and  exercise  only,  in  a  large 
yard,  according  to  circumstances.  In  summer,  from  May  to  October, 
they  are  fed  on  the  pastures  continuously,  sometimes  helped  with  cheap 
or  abundant  food  like  cabbage,  turnips,  swedes,  or  two  to  three  pounds 
of  cake.  The  winter  feeding  is  swedes,  turnips,  cabbages,  cake,  barley, 
or  other  meal,  malt  grains,  and  hay  or  straw  chaff.  Mr.  Lofft  is  breed- 
ing three  sorts  of  Bed  Polls ;  first,  large  growthy  beef-makers ;  second, 
middle-sized  general-purpose  animals,  milk  and  beef  5  third,  a  small  size 
for  milk  only. 

Heifers  commence  to  breed  from  fourteen  months,  and  line-breeding 
is  approved  by  Mr.  Lofft,  except  when  special  objection  exists.  The 
difference  in  weights  are  as  follows :  Large  size :  Bull,  1  ton  to  1  ton  7  cwt. ; 
cow,  15  cwt.  to  17  cwt. ;  steer,  12  cwt.  to  13  cwt.,  2  years  old.  Middle 
size :  Bull,  18  cwt.  to  1  ton;  cow,  13  cwt.  to  14  cwt.;  steer,  10  cwt.  to 
12  cwt.,  2  years  old. 

Mr.  Lofft  looks  to  form  a  small  dairy  Bed-Poll  tribe  of  less  size  than 
either  the  Kerry  or  Breton  stock,  but  has  only  bred  with  these  aims  for 
a  couple  of  years.  The  remarks  of  Mr.  Lofft  on  milking  qualities  in  cows 
deserve  attention. 

The  origin  of  the  Bed  Polls  is  a  debatable  point,  and  therefore  it  is 
important  that  Mr.  Lofft  distinctly  states  "  the  root  of  the  race  is  the 


72  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

old  Suffolk  cow."  About  the  time  of  the  first  French  revolution  High 
Suffolk  was  noted  for  its  herds  of  dun  cows,  pale  yellow,  or  slightly  gin- 
ger color.  This  cow,  Mr.  Lofft  believes,  is  a  variety  of  the  old  White- 
Polled  cow  indigenous  to  the  country,  and  kept,  in  bygone  times,  either 
tame  by  the  monks  or  semi-domesticated  in  noblemen's  parks.  He  in- 
tends to  get  up  two  small  herd  of  these  old  and  very  scarce  stock,  fa- 
mous for  their  milking  qualities. 

The  Herefords. — In  reply  to  my  inquiries,  Mr.  T.  Duckham,  M.  P.,  who, 
as  first  editor  of  the  Hereford  Hera-Book  and  representative  and  resi- 
dent in  the  county,  is  generally  associated  with  its  celebrated  cattle, 
gives  his  authority  to  the  belief  that  they  are  "indigenous"  (inclosure 
13).  He  also  refers  to  the  records  of  Smithfield  for  comparison  of  the 
Hereford  breed  with  other  sorts. 

I  may  here  note  that  whilst  staying  at  King's  Lynn,  Norfolk,  after  my 
visit  to  the  farms  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  I  found  the  picture  of  a  Here- 
ford ox  on  the  walls  of  the  hotel.  This  animal  was  exhibited  in  1844, 
and  was  bred  in  Norfolk  by  Mr.  Hudson,  of  Castle- Acre.  The  weight 
was  1,948  pounds,  the  carcass  weighing  1,740  pounds,  and  the  fat  208 
pounds.  The  dead  weight  of  the  world-renowned  Durham  ox  was  2,322 
pounds. 

The  Norland  Sussex. — Mr.  W.  0.  Morland,  of  Lamberhurst  Court 
Lodge,  Kent,  in  reference  to  the  Sussex  breed  of  cattle  (inclosure  14), 
gives  their  weight  at  three  years — cow,  80  to  85  stone  ;  bull,  100  to  190 
stone,  the  stone  being  14  pounds.  In  this,  as  in  other  cases,  the  recorded 
weights  at  Smithfield  furnish  the  best  comparison  between  the  various 
breeds. 

The  Sussex  stock  are  notably  a  heavy,  beef-making  breed.  It  is  a 
point  to  be  remembered  that  the  cattle  are  housed  in  winter,  not  on  ac- 
count of  delicacy  of  constitution,  but  because  of  the  wetness  and  cold- 
ness of  Wealden  soil,  a  geological  special  clay. 

The  Sussex  breed  are  believed  by  many  stock  exhibitors  to  have  been 
derived  from  the  Devon  breed,  but  for  a  long  date  they  have  been  na- 
tive to  Sussex,  where  they  are  favorites. 

The  opinion  of  Mr.  John  Treadwell,  Upper  Winchenden,  Aylesbury, 
Bucks,  is  regarded  as  second  to  none  in  the  matter  of  stock.  Mr.  Tread- 
welPs  leisure  is  entirely  taken  up  by  judging  at  the  Eoyal  Society  and  other 
shows.  This  farm  of  270  arable  and  330  of  pasture  acres  is  visited  by 
agriculturists  from  all  parts.  In  his  report  (inclosure  15)  he  states  that 
his  herd  of  Shorthorn  grade  milch-cows  average  16  pints  of  milk  each 
per  day. 

The  North  Devons. — An  unsigned  return  (iuclosure  1C)  from  North 
Devon  speaks  in  favor  of  the  North  Devon  breed  of  cattle  for  local 
breeding  and  feeding,  and  gives  a  very  moderate  estimate  of  weight  at 
maturity — cow,  G  to  8  cwt.  ;  bull,  10  to  12  cwt. ;  ox,  8  to  10  cwt. — which 
seems  to  fit  with  the  appellation  given  to  North  Devons,  "  the  little 
noblemen  of  the  hills." 

The  inclosure  herewith  sent  (No.  17),  relating  to  Smithfield,  gives  the 
names  of  prize  breeders  for  several  years,  and  these  names  form  a 
directory  of  great  value  to  buyers. 

THE  ABBEY  FARMS  HERD  OF  SHORTHORNS.  . 

Among  the  noted  herds  I  was  fortunate  in  being  able  to  pay  a  visit 
to  the  stock  farms  of  Mr.  Hugh  Aylmer,  West  Dereham.  I  arrived  at 
the  well-known  "Abbey  Farm"  unexpectedly,  and  found  Mr.  Aylmer 
was  "  amongst  his  stock  in  the  fields."  I  soon  had  the  pleasure  of 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  73 

making  the  acquaintance  of  one  of  the  most  successful  breeders  of  Short- 
horns now  living,  and  whose  name  with  that  of  Mr.  Booth  is  connected 
wherever  the  celebrated  blood  is  found.  The  inclosure  (No.  18)  is  the 
current  catalogue  of  Mr.  Aylmer's  stock,  to  which  reference,  will  show 
the  unrivaled  character  of  the  stock. 

The  homestead,  near  the  remains  of  the  old  abbey,  is  situated  in  a 
rich,  level  country,  some  of  the  pastures  carrying  one  and  a  half  bullock 
to  the  acre. 

On  two  out  of  the  three  farms  occupied  by  Mr.  Aylmer  there  had  been 
a  slight  attack  of  foot-and-mouth  disease  (a  terrible  scourge,  where  ani- 
mals worth  500  guineas  each  are  exposed),  which  had  been  successfully 
treated  and  routed. 

At  Dereham  we  were  on  classic  rural  ground,  for  Tusser,  the  agricult- 
ural-axiom author,  occupied  the  moated  farm  where  the  abbey  remains. 

Having  visited  the  plain,  useful  farm  buildings,  all  fairly  ventilated, 
and  seen  the  first  group  of  a  dozen  pedigree  cows  all  out  for  day  graz- 
ing, during  the  present  very  open  season,  we  went  to  the  manor-house 
farm,  passing  the  flock  of  Cotswold  shearling  ewes,  fenced  in  with  inex- 
pensive string-netting  tied  to  sticks.  In  the  cattle  stables  each  manger 
had  three  divisions,  one  for  sliced  roots,  one  for  broken  cake,  and  one 
for  a  lump  of  rock-salt.  The  latter  was  everywhere,  in  buildings  and 
fields,  always  accessible. 

On  this  farm,  amongst  the  stock  that  I  especially  noted  were  young 
Sir  Anthony,  a  red-and- white  bull,  calved  last  March;  Stopford,  just 
twelve  months  old,  son  of  the  Sir  Simeon  which  has  just  been  sold  at 
a  large  price  to  go  to  Ireland.  Stopford  promises  to  become  as  grand 
as  his  sire.  There  were  also  a  couple  of  heifers — Castanet  10  and  Cas- 
tanet 11 — bred  from  that  capital  bull  Sir  Benedict,  42388,  a  splendid 
white  roan.  These  two  Castanets,  half  sisters  and  about  a  year  old, 
are  considered  worth  1,000  guineas  the  pair. 

The  bull  Felix,  rather  over  two  years,  was  a  very  handsome  and  com- 
plete roan,  and  goes  back  to  Comet,  an  illustrious  descent.  King  Rod- 
erick and,  indeed,  most  of  Mr.  Aylmer's  stock,  have  noticeably  flat  oval- 
shaped  horns.  Some  of  the  grand  old  cows  we  were  looking  at  had 
produced  ten  to  a  dozen  calves,  selling  at  from  350  to  400  guineas  each. 
One  young  bull-calf  we  saw,  under  twelve  months  old,  is  priced  at  350 
guineas. 

The  repute  of  Mr.  Aylmer's  stock  is  such  that  for  twenty-five  years 
there  has  been  no  occasion  to  exhibit  at  shows.  Some  of  the  cows,  I 
noted,  had  twice  calved  in  the  twelve  months— a  good  evidence  of  their 
prolific  nature. 

In  Mr.  Aylmer's  u  workshop,"  or  study,  was  the  framed  certificate 
awarded  him  at  the  Centennial  Exhibition  held  at  Philadelphia  in  1876, 
where  he  exhibited  a  pen  of  his  sheep. 

DENCHFIELD  STOCK. 

From  the  celebrated  vale  of  Aylesbury  Mr.  Edw.  Denchfield  gives 
some  useful  details  of  Buckinghamshire  as  to  its'famous  regions  (in- 
closure 19). 

Plaster  clay  is  the  geological  strata  southeast,  between  the  Thames 
and  river  Colne.  Then  there  is  the  chalk  formation  of  the  Chiltern  Hills, 
and  the  Tesworth  clay  fills  up  the  vale  of  Aylesbury,  noted  for  its  pro- 
ductions both  animal  and  vegetable.  Limestone  and  oolite  occupy  the 
north  of  the  county,  and  the  natural  grasses  of  Buckinghamshire  favor 
the  finishing  off  as  well  as  the  rearing  of  stock.  Dairy  herds  of  Short- 


74 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


horns  flourish  here,  whilst  the  summer  meadows  are  good  enough  to 
graze  and  fatten  bullocks. 

Yards  and  stalls  are  afforded  to  house  the  cattle  in  winter,  but  some  of 
the  stock  remain  out  all  the  year'round.  The  stock  thrive  on  the  grasses 
in  summer  and  get  hay,  straw,  roots,  and  artificial  food  in  winter  when 
needed.  The  cattle  are  bred  in  the  dairy  herds  and  weaned  at  first  on 
milk  or  artificial  substitutes.  The  heifer  calves  are  brought  on  to  re- 
plenish the  herds,  and  the  young  bull  calves  are  either  sold  as  stock 
bulls,  or  as  oxen  are  drafted  into  other  counties  of  tillage  land,  to  be  fed 
out. 

Mr.  Denchfield  adds  that  he  finds  Shorthorn  cattle  best  for  dairying 
purposes,  since  they  come  to  heavy  weight  for  the  butchers  when  fed 
out.  The  yield  of  milk  and  butter  varies  much  with  the  seasons,  so  that 
the  last  decade  of  wet  years  has  lowered  the  average  before  established. 

I  may  here  observe  that  some  of  the  very  best  stock  of  all  kinds, 
horses,  cattle,  sheep,  and  pigs,  come  out  of  the  county  of  Bucks,  and  with 
such  good  stock  the  name  of  Denchfield  has  been  associated  for  many 
years. 

COTSWOLD   CATTLE. 

From  Colonel  Nigel  Kingscote,  M.  P.,  I  may  conclude  the  special  ref- 
erences. In  the  Shorthorn  Herd-Book  Colonel  Kingscote,  at  the  present 
time  as  in  the  past,  will  be  seen  to  own  some  highly  celebrated  stock. 
His  estate,  Wotten-under-Edge,  Gloucestershire,  is  800  feet  above  sea- 
level,  on  the  west  of  the  Cotswold  hills.  The  geological  stratum  is  oolite, 
and  here,  on  a  brash  loamy  surface  soil,  the  pure-bred  Shorthorn  cat- 
tle, the  pure-bred  Sussex  Southdown  sheep,  the  pure-bred  Suffolk  cart- 
horses, and  the  pure-bred  Berkshire  pigs  form  a  higher  class  stock  that 
I  note  in  evidence  of  the  adaptability  of  diverse  English  breeds  to  a 
"habitat,"  thus  is,  in  each  instance,  a  change  to  their  original  districts, 
but  where  they  all  flourish  and  attain  a  high  degree  of  excellence. 

The  cattle  are  housed  in  winter,  in  covered  yards  and  open  sheds,  and 
fed  on  hay,  straw,  and  roots.  They  reach  the  weight  of  18  cwt.  and  up- 
wards, and  are  disposed  of  by  private  and  public  sale. 

WEIGHTS   OF  THE  VARIOUS  BREEDS. 

The  comparison  of  cattle  breeds,  in  the  report  made  by  Mr.  Faulkner, 
whose  figures  are  valuable,  brings  together  the  following  points,  as 
averages  in  pounds  (embraced  in- Consul  Dockcry's  report) : 

Live  weights,  under  four  years  old. 


Breed. 

Steer. 

Heifer. 

Cow. 

Welsh  

2  498 

2  914 

2  214 

2  486 

2  127 

2  390 

Polled  Aberdeen  

2,375 

,883 

1  883 

2  241 

890 

2  245 

2,212 

,049 

2  352 

Highlander  

2,092 

,486 

1,486 

Norfolk  Polled  1  

2,012 

,984 

1,984 

1,966 

,600 

1,934 

Jersey  

896 

Dead  weight,  average  in  pounds. 


920 

FOO 

800 

Sussex  

840 

720 

800 

800 

920 

800 

Polled  Aberdeen  

720 

Polled  Norfolk  

700 

560 

THE   UNITED   KINGDOM. 


75 


Offal  reckoned  8  pounds  to  the  score,  except  in  regard  to  Welsh,  of 
which  the  offal  is  estimated  9  pounds  to  the  score. 

Amongst  records  of  extraordinary  weight  are  three  instances,  these 
being  of  a  Durham  ox,  a  Hereford  animal,  and  a  Norman,  the  latter  be- 
ing exhibited  as  the  "  bceuf  gras  "  in  Paris. 

The  dead  weight  of  the  Durham  ox  that  was  exhibited  throughout 
England,  in  a  former  generation,  was  2,322  pounds ;  of  the  Hereford  ox, 
1884,  bred  in  Norfolk,  1,938  pounds ;  and  the  Norman  bullock,  alive, 
weighed  over  30  cwt. 

MILK  AND  BUTTER  YIELD  OF  THE  VARIOUS  BREEDS. 

The  average  weight  of  milk  thus  compares  yearly : 


• 

Breed. 

Pounds. 

Pounds  of  milk 
to  1  pound  of 
butter. 

Pounds  of  milk 
to  1  pound  of 
cheese. 

8  000 

24 

10 

3  000 

Devons                                 '                                                           

3  500 

22 

9 

3,  500 

24 

10 

Galloway 

3  000 

22 

9 

2  750 

22 

9 

Sussox.                                                                                                       

4,  000 

24 

11 

Welsh  

3,000 

24 

10 

Jjon  frh  orns                                                                                                   ... 

3,000 

22 

9 

Avi'HLiiv.       ..                     .                   ...               ...                   .'......... 

6,  noo 

22 

9 

Jorsevs 

4  880 

17  to  20 

In  a  recent  instance  the  Devon  cow  Myrtle  gave  26  pounds  of  milk  in 
a  day  at  the  London  Dairy  Show,  and  the  solids  of  her  milk  were  found 
superior  to  that  from  the  Jersey  competitors.  The  Polled  Norfolk  cows 
have  also  given  some  large  milk  records,  and  extending  over  a  long 
period. 

Mr.  Faulkner's  opinion  is  in  agreement  with  that  of  most  other  ex- 
perts when  he  indicates  the  best  beef-producing  animal  as  the  cross 
bred  from  the  Scotch  Polled  cow  and  Shorthorn  bull.  Still,  of  late,  this 
superiority  has  been  challenged  by  breeders  of  Hereford  and  other 
crosses. 

PRICES  OF  THE  VARIOUS  BREEDS. 

The  general  prices  of  pedigree  animals  are  closely  appraised  for  cows 
and  heifers: 


Breed. 

Price. 

Breed. 

Price. 

Shorthorns 

£35  to  £50 

Hereford 

£35  to  £50 

Devon  s         .....          .. 

30          45 

G  alloway                      ..  .....      

25         40 

Abvnk  'ens  

30          45 

20         35 

Sussex.  .... 

SO          40 

30         40 

Jersey 

20          30 

Welsh 

20         30 

76  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

The  prices  at  which  stock  was  sold  during  the  year  1883  at  the  Bir- 
mingham Show  sale  were  as  follws : 

Shorthorns.—  One  bull  200  guineas  and  one  for  50  guineas;  one  heifer 
brought  37  guineas,  and  one  of  "Factory  Girl  strain"  82  guineas. '  The 
prices  of  others  sold  ranged  between  the  last  two  prices  named. 

Sir  Hugh  Aylmer's  sales  of  Shorthorns  took  place  at  the  Manor  House, 
West  Durham,  on  the  3d  of  May.  It  was  well  attended,  but  prices  were 
not  so  high  as  many  anticipated.  Fifty-five  cows  brought  £3,798185. 6d., 
averaging  £69  Is.  5d.  each.  Eighteen  bulls  sold  for  £1  ,038  6s.,  or  an 
average  of  £72  13s.  8$.  The  highest  price  paid  was  for  Eastthorp  Lady 
2d,  calved  May  14,  1881,  200  guineas.  The  celebrated  bull  Sir  Simeon 
was  passed,  the  reserve  of  500  guineas  not  having  been  bid. 

On  July  11,  at  T.  Halford's  sale  of  Shorthorns  at  Castle  Hill,  Sher- 
bone,  four  cows  and  three  bulls  brought  on  an  average  £745  10s.  each. 
The  highest  figure,  paid  by  Lord  Bective  for  the  Duchess  of  Leicester, 
was  1,505  guineas.  Thirty-two  cows  averaged  £185  Id.  each,  and  six 
bulls  averaged  £281 18*.  Gd.  each. 

At  Henry  Lovatt's  sale,  July  3,  at  Low  Hill,  Wolverhampton,  the 
average  obtained  was  £53  2s.  2d. 

The  great  Halker  sale  of  Shorthorns  took  place  on  September  6,  and 
showed  a  large  falling  off  from  previous  years.  Thirty-one  cows  and 
heifers  averaged  £182  each;  the  bulls  averaged  £112  each.  Twelve 
Oxford  cows  and  heifers  averaged  £312  17s.  Gd.  each,  and  seven  bulls  of 
the  same  family  £142  Is.  each. 

Hereford  prices. — At  Mr.  F.  Platt's  sales  at  Barnby  Manor,  Newark, 
July  21,  one  bull  calf,  four  months  old,  sold  to  Mr.  C.  M.  Culbertson,  of 
the  United  States,  for  100  guineas.  Another  sold  for  150  guineas.  One 
cow  and  calf  sold  to  Mr.  Burleigh,  of  the  United  States,  for  175  guineas ; 
also  a  heifer  to  the  same  purchaser  for  90  guineas.  One  bull,  Grove  III, 
was  sold  to  Mr.  Culbertson  for  810  guineas.  The  average  price  of  cows 
and  cattle  was  £68  17s.  each,  while  that  of  bulls  was  £107  each.  At 
the  sales  of  Mr.  George  Pitt,  on  his  farm  of  Chadnor  Court,  twenty-one 
head  were  sold  at  an  average  price  of  £77  Is.  M.  each.  The  highest 
price  paid  was  for  the  cow  liosebloom,  which  was  purchased  by  the  Hon. 
M.  H.  Cochrane,  of  Canada,  for  260  guineas.  He  also  took  her  heifer 
calf  at  47  guineas. 

Sussex  prices. — At  Mr.  Thomas  Knight's  sale  in  October  last  the  prices 
obtained  were,  perhaps,  the  -highest  on  record  for  the  breed ;  twelve 
cows  brought  on  an  average  £42  6s.  each ;  four  two-year  old  heifers 
£49  4s.  Gd.  each;  six  yearling  steers  £23  10s.  each;  six  weanyer  heifers 
£29  4s.  Gd.  each ;  and  five  weanyer  steers  £17  12s.  6$.  each. 

Jersey  prices. — For  Jersey  cattle  some  very  high  prices  have  been, 
paid.  One  bull  calf,  six  weeks  old,  sold  for  £2,500.  The  average 
prices  of  those  shipped  to  the  United  States  during  the  year  (over  800 
in  number)  will  exceed  £45  each. 

Prices  of  Aberdeen  bulls.— At  B.  C.  Auld's  sale,  on  the  13th  of  De- 
cember last,  twelve  cows  averaged  £114  9s.  Gd.  each ;  eleven  two-year- 
old  heifers  £156  3s.  9d.  each ;  seven  heifer  calves  £90  7s.  each,  and 
two  five-year-old  bulls  £53  11s.  each. 

The  general  average  for  fifty-one  animals  was  £90  16s. 

Prices  of  West  Highlanders.— The  Earl  of  Dunmore  sold  drafts  from 
his  superior  herd  of  West  Highlanders,  in  the  island  of  Harris,  at  In- 
verness, nine  bulls  (six  being  calves)  at  an  average  of  £21  each ;  also 
eighty-four  cows  and  hei  fers  at  an  average  of  £19  9s.  each.  The  highest 
prices  paid  were  50  guineas  for  a  three-year-old  heifer,  and  two  heifers 
cl'the  same  age  sold  at  48  guineas  each. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  77 

COST  OF  TRANSPORTATION  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

I  note  the  cost  of  transit  and  attendance  on  stock  as  estimated  from 
the  consular  reports  of  Dundee  and  Liverpool,  and  confirm  them  as 
approximations  that  may  be  taken  as  a  guide  to  fluctuating  circum- 
stances. 

Upon  inquiry  I  learn  that  the  ordinary  rates  for  the  transportation  of 
cattle  from  London  to  New  York  are  as  follows :  Bulls  and  cows  alike, 
£5  to  £8,  according  to  demand;  calves  under  12  months,  £3  to  £4. 
Above  12  months  the  charges  are  the  same  as  for  bulls  and  cows. 

Under  the  British  passenger  act  steamships  cannot  carry  more  than 
ten  head  of  cattle  if  more  than  fifty  steerage  passengers  are  on  board. 

CATTLE   CENSUS  OF  THE   UNITED  KINGDOM. 

The  proportions  of  the  different  breeds  of  cattle,  and  between  the 
numbers  of  stock  that  are  being  reared  and  fattened  for  meat  and  for 
the  production  of  milk,  are  partly  given  in  the  official  reports,  but  any 
estimate  thereon  must  be  accepted  only  with  great  reserve. 

The  total  number  of  cattle  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  in  1883  was 
5,962,771. 

EXPORTS  OF  BRITISH  CATTLE. 

The  export  of  cattle  from  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  to  other  coun- 
tries is  confined  to  selections  of  breeding  animals,  which,  relatively  small 
in  numbers,  is  yet  so  important  from  the  wide  area  of  demand,  that 
many  English  and  Scotch  breeders  are  restricting  their  offers  of  stock, 
feeling  the  necessity  of  reserving  their  animals  for  home  use.  This  is 
especially  the  case  in  respect  to  Scotch  Polled,  Norfolk  and  Suffolk 
Polled,  and  the  Hereford  breeds. 

The  proportion  of  pedigree  stock  kept  by  farmers  is  still  very  small 
compared  with  the  general  purpose  stock,  often  pure  bred  but  unregis- 
tered, and  the  various  cross-breeds  that  are  commonly  preferred  both 
for  meat  production  and  milk. 

In  the  table  of  weights  (inclosure  17)  it  will  be  seen  that  the  cross- 
breeds head  the  list  for  their  daily  increase. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

In  these  concluding  remarks,  I  refer  with  pleasure  to  the  assistance 
I  have  received  from  Mr.  Kains-Jackson  in  making  my  inquiries,  and  1 
desire  to  put  on  record  my  sincere  acknowldgements  to  my  several 
correspondents  for  their  frank  and  courteous  kindness  in  giving  me 
full  information  which,  from  their  great  resources  and  experience,  was 
especially  valuable. 

E.  A.  MEKBITT, 

Consul- General. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE-GENERAL, 

London,  January  .31, 1884 


78 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY  PABMING. 


Inclosurea  in  Consul- General  Merritt'a  report. 


1.  Notes  on  French  Stock. 

2.  Report  of  last  French  Show,  by  K. 

Jackson. 

3.  Holt  Beeber  on  Shorthorns. 

4.  The  Cattle  of  Great  Britain.     (Illus- 

trated.) 

5.  History  of  Argus  Cattle. 

6.  Farmer's  Hand-Book. 

7.  Return  from  Samuel  Beck. 

8.  Return  from  Mr.  R.  Stratton. 

9.  Return  from  J.  B.  Lawes. 

10.  Return  from  T.  H.  Risdon.     . 

11.  Return  from  J.  and  F.  Howard. 


12.  Return  from  Alfred  Taylor. 

13.  Return  from  T.  Duckhum. 

14.  Return  from  W.  C.  Morland. 

15.  Return  from  J.  Treadwell. 

16.  Return  from  North  Devon. 

17.  Giving  names  of  prize  breeders. 

18.  Catalogue  of  Mr.  Aylmer's  stock. 

19.  Notes  from  Buckinghamshire. 

20.  Return  from  Colonel  Kingscote. 

21.  Table  of  milk  record. 

22.  Report  on  dairy  trials. 

23.  Table  of  weights. 

24.  Number  of  selected  portraits. 


[Such  portions  of  the  above-mentioned  inclosures  as  are  not  incorporated  in  the 
consul-general's  report,  and  are  otherwise  of  practical  value  to  American  agricultur- 
ists, will  be  found  in  the  supplement.] 


CATTLE  BREEDS  OF  THE  UNITED  KINGDOM.*       - 

The  great  importance  of  the  information  called  for  to  a  vast  number 
of  people  and  of  interests  in  the  United  States  led  me  to  seek  out  an 
authority  of  undoubted  experience  and  ability  in  England,  to  furnish 
the  desired  data  in  behalf  of  American  agriculturists  and  others.  I 
adopted  this  plan  for  the  reason  that7  in  order  to  make  it  specially  use- 
ful, the  report  should  be  full  and  reliable  in  every  respect. 

As  a  matter  of  course  I  could  not  be  able  to  equal  an  adept  in  this 
particular  line  of  investigation,  for  the  reason  that  the  subject  is  one 
covering  such  a  wide  field  and  one  beset  with  so  many  difficulties  that 
only  one  having  an  extensive  acquaintance  with  English  breeders  and 
breeds  of  cattle  could  do  the  subject  justice. 

I  was  most  fortunate  in  securing  the  services  of  Mr.  James  Long,  of 
Hetchin,  England,  a  well-known  authority  on  agricultural  subjects  both 
in  England  and  on  the  continent,  who  has  prepared  the  accompany- 
ing clear,  strong,  and  exhaustive  report. 

It  will  be  found  that  great  care  and  attention  have  been  given  to  this 
report,  and  that  its  impartiality  and  fairness  are  beyond  question. 
Where  so  many  interested  dealers  in  and  breeders  of  cattle  have  to  be 
consulted,  it  is  important  that  the  facts  about  such  breeds  should  be 
stated  by  one  who  is  perfectly  free  from  bias  in  any  respect.  This  has 
been  done  in  this  report,  and  I  submit  the  same  with  full  confidence 
that  Mr.  Long's  acquaintance  with  our  agricultural  interests,  through 
this  valuable  mass  of  information,  will  lead  to  a  desire  on  thepartof  our 
agriculturists  to  followup  the  results  of  his  future  investigations  as  they 
may  hereafter  be  given  to  the  public. 

ALBEET  D.  SHAW, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 
Manchester,  February  19,  188d. 

*  This  report  was  prepared  for  Consul  Shaw,  of  Manchester,  by  Mr.  James  Long,  of 
Hetchin,  England. 


THE  *  UNITED   KINGDOM.  79 

3ATTLE   AND   CATTLE   IM- 


A..—INTEODCJCTORY— BRITISH    OATTL 

POETS.  ^  ii    ~  TmJT~ 

The  annexed  particulars,  referring  to  the  only  pure  races  of  cattle 
known  in  the  United  Kingdom  which  are  essentially  British,  will  be 
found  in  almost  every  case  very  complete  and  answer  every  question 
put  in  the  circular.  The  exceptions  are  the  Shetland,  the  Galloway,  and 
the  Sussex,  about  which  it  is  most  difficult  to  obtain  technical  infor- 
mation. Some  twenty  Sussex  breeders  have  been  addressed,  but  their 
answers  are.  not  entirely  satisfactory,  but  the  information  given  will  be 
found  reliable  in  every  way.  The  Shetland  is  an  almost  entirely  unknown 
race,  and  the  Galloway,  to  which  I  desired  to  give  a  fuller  place,  I  hope 
to  supplement;  the  editor  of  the  Herd-Book,  who  is  collecting  informa- 
tion, promising  to  send  it  to  me  shortly.  In  all,  the  fifteen  British  breeds 
are  treated,  and  the  information  given  is  based  upon  that  furnished 
by  nearly  a  hundred  of  the  leading  breeders  in  the  country,  and  which 
has  been  arranged  by  the  writer,  who  has  added  much  which  an  ex- 
tended experience  has  enabled  him  to  rely  upon.  It  will  be  noticed  that 
almost  every  breeder  speaks  of  his  own  race  as  the  best ;  this  is  natural 
enthusiasm,  and  I  have  in  some  cases  been  compelled  to  slightly  tone 
the  rather  exaggerated  praise  bestowed  upon  one  breed  in  opposition 
to  another.  Particulars  are  added  with  reference  to  breeding,  feeding, 
soiling,  shipment,  and  scientific  dairy  instruments,  and  centrifugal 
cream  separators,*  which  will  be  found  very  complete,  tile  two  last 
named  subjects  being  especially  familiar  to  the  writer,  who  has  invrjiti- 
gated  them  in  each  European  dairy  country.  Drawings  or  wood  cuts 
are  annexed  as  well  of  these  machines  and  instruments  as  of  the  chief 
races  of  cattle. 

Foreign  cattle  are  little  kept  in  England,  and  almost  all  the  small 
herds  which  had  been  formed  have  been  dispersed  or  have  degenerated 
on  account  of  the  Government  action  entirely  preventing  importation. 
Dutch  cows  were  at  one  time  very  largely  used  for  milk  production 
while  French,  Spanish,  and  German  beasts  were  imported  m  immense 
numbers  for  beef.  Now  the  only  countries  sending  live  animals  in  any 
numbers  are  Denmark  and  Sweden  and  Norway;  the  first  named  doing 
an  immense  trade  last  year,  leading  the  United  States  during  the  first 
five  months,  since  when  she  has  started  a  large  company  and  is  build- 
ing a  new  fleet  of  ships  for  further  extending  the  trade.  The  Danish 
cattle  come  from  Aalborg,in  Jutland  (which  port  I  visited  last  year),  to 
Newcnstle  and  Hull,  and  are  chiefly  Jydsk  or  Jutland,  a  medium-sized 
race  of  moderate  quality.  A  few  Swiss  cattle  are  kept  in  England,  the 
writer  having  a  few  years  ago  formed  the  largest  herd ;  the  beasts  are 
large,  silver-grey  in  color,  slightly  too  heavy  in  bone  and  skin,  but  very 
large  milkers,  good  feeders  for  the  butcher,  and  extremely  hardy,  living 
where  the  majority  of  other  beasts  would  starve.  These  beasts  are  ex 
tremely  profitable  and  the  handsomest  of  any  known  race  in  color. 
French  cattle  are  not  bred  in  England,  but  the  Shorthorn  is  largely 
bred  in  France  for  crossing  upon  the  Charolaise,  Cotentiu,  and  Nivernais 
beast,  which  it  much  improves,  the  Government  keeping  up  one  pure 
Shorthorn  breeding  establishment  for  the  purpose.  In  my  numerous 
visits  among  the  French  breeders  I  have  found  their  opinion  of  the 
Shorthorn  to  be  that  it  is  better  than  any  race  they  have,  and  consid- 
ered to  be  the  best  in  the  world  for  crossing.  This,  however,  is  not  bred 

to  such  perfection  as  in  England. ^^ 

*  These  special  papers  will  be  found  in  the  supplement. 


80 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


Best  importing  cattle. — The  best  beasts  to  import  are: 

For  meat. — The  Shorthorn,  the  Hereford,  the  Aberdeen  Poll,  the  Gallo- 
way, the  Devon,  the  Sussex,  and  the  Longhorn. 

For  beef  and  milk  combined. — The  Shprthorn,  the  Red  Poll,  and  the  Devon. 

For  mills  alone. — The  Ayrshire,  the  Shorthorn  (not  pedigree),  the  Red 
Poll,  and  the  Kerry. 

For  butter. — The  Jersey,  the  Guernsey,  and  the  Red  Poll. 

For  bleak,  cold,  or  wet  districts: 

For  beef.— -TheWest  Highland  and  the  Welsh. 
For  milk. — The  Kerry. 

For  beef  and  draught. — The  Sussex,  the  Devon,  the  Welsh,  the  Highland, 
and  the  Longhorn. 

Cost  of  British  cattle. — The  cost  of  animals  of  these  races  depends 
solely  upon  whether  pedigree  is  desired  or  merely  good,  useful  specimens 
such  as  the  best  farmers  select  for  their  own  use.  The  following  figures, 
however,  may  be  entirely  relied  upon  for  useful  non-pedigree  beasts 
well  selected : 


*                                               Breeds. 

Bull,  1  to  3 
years. 

Cow 

Heifer. 

£20  to  £50 

£30  to 

£35 

£°2  to  £30 

20          50 

30 

35 

22         30 

20          50 

30 

35 

22         30 

20          50 

30 

35 

25         35 

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

EedPoll          

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

West  Highland 

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

"Welsh.                                                                                  

20          50 

30 

40 

25          35 

20          35 

15 

25 

12          20 

Shetland  

25          40 

20 

35 

17          30 

35          60 

30 

40 

23          30 

Jersey                                    ..        ...  .  

15          40 

25 

35 

20         30 

15          40 

25 

35 

20         30 

For  pedigree  beasts  fancy  prices  are  paid,  often  most  unwisely,  for 
unless  a  particular  animal  is  wanted  the  best  of  blood  can  be  obtained 
if  the  purchaser  can  meet  with  any  person  to  guide  him,  and  who  will 
take  the  trouble  to  go  with  him,  at  considerably  less  money  than  is  paid 
by  Americans  in  the  ordinary  way.  I  frequently  see  buyers  (English) 
who  purchase  for  fashion,  giving  high  figures  for  animals,  while  better 
animals  in  the  same  herd  are  overlooked,  although  they  could  be  bought 
at  market  price. 

Number  of  cattle  in  tlie  United  Kingdom. — The  cattle  in  the  United 
Kingdom  are  as  follows  :  In  England,  4,250,000  ;  in  Wales,  651,000 ;  in 
Scotland,  1,095,000  ;  in  Ireland,  4,096,000  ;  total,  10,097,000.  Of  these 
there  are  cows  in  milk  or  in  calf:  In  England,  1,650,000;  in  Wales, 
200,000;  in  Scotland,  395,000 ;  in  Ireland,  1,401,000;  total,  3,724,000— 
a  decided  increase,  but  considerably  less  than  ten  years  ago. 

Imports  of  cattle  and  cattle  products  into  the  United  Kingdom. — The 
imports  have  considerably  decreased,  owing  chiefly  to  the  cattle-disease 
restrictions,  and  the  same  cause  has  prevented  animals  being  more 
largely  bred.  The  imports  were :  In  1865,  283,000 ;  in  1871,  248,600 ; 
in  1876,  271,000 ;  rising  in  1880  to  389,000,  and  falling  in  1882  to  343,000. 

In  the  year  1882,  314,000  cattle  were  brought  into  the  metropolitan 
cattle  markets,  of  which  50,129  were  foreign.  The  average  price  of 
beasts  in  1882  was,  for  inferior,  4s.  3f$.  per  stone ;  second  class,  4s. 
third  class  (large,  prime),  5s.  l^d. ;  fourth  class  (Scots),  5s. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  81 

In  1882,  228,429  cwt.  of  salt  and  463,952  cwt.  of  fresh  or  slightly 
waited  beef,  201,000  cwt.  unenumerated,  560,000  preserved,  &c.,  other 
than  salted  and  tongues  were  imported,  against  251,000  cwt.  of  salt, 
817,000  cwt.  of  fresh  or  slightly  salted,  178,000  and  575,000  cwt.  of 
uuenumerated  in  1881 ;  or,  in  other  words,  beef  to  the  value  of  nearly 
a  million  sterling  less. 

The  average  weight  of  cattle  received  from  other  countries  is:  Den- 
mark, 70  ;  France,  103 J  ;  Schleswig-Holstein,  85 ;  Netherlands,  85 ;  Nor- 
way and  Sweden,  78;  Portugal,  86J;  Spain,  71;  Canada,  90;  the 
United  States,  101. 

England  cannot  breed  sufficient  cattle  either  for  beef  or  the  dairy  to 
meet  her  requirements,  and  there  is  a  great  market  for  dairy  cows  at  all 
times. 

In  the  face  of  existing  regulations  the  best  means  of  sending  beef  to 
England  is  by  means  of  refrigerators,  and,  where  the  price  will  pay  the 
exporter,  he  may  reckon  upon  a  continuous  demand.  Dairy  produce  is 
always  in  demand,  the  home  supply  being  far  too  little,  and  Denmark, 
France,  Holland,  and  Germany  supplying  great  quantities.  If  a  fresh- 
butter  trade  or  a  cream  (preserved  in  tins)  trade  could  be  established 
it  would  succeed.  The  home-cheese  trade  is  succeeding  better,  while 
cheese  and  salt  butter  are  produced  from  countries  much  nearer  and  at 
such  prices  as  America  could  hardly  hope  to  beat. 

British  cattle  are  in  general  so  used  to  a  severe,  changeable,  and 
moist  climate  that  they  are  certain  to  do  well  in  all  but  very  hot  coun- 
tries where  herbage  is  tolerably  good. 

I  have  to  acknowledge  valuable  aid  from  the  editors  of  the  Herd- 
Books  of  the  Eed  Poll  and  Welsh;  Mr.  Barthmore,  of  Ayrshire  fame; 
Mr.  James  Guernsey,  Mr.  Brydon,  and  the  editors  of  two  of  our  princi- 
pal journals,  and  other  gentlemen,  many  of  whom  are  named. 


B.-BBEEDING  CATTLE. 

Mr.  Burrows  says  that  one  of  the  most  important  considerations  for 
the  breeder  must  be  the  adaptability  of  his  stock  to  the  situation  and 
climate,  the  soil  he  cultivates,  and  the  crops  he  can  grow.  To  expose 
too  suddenly  some  breeds  of  cattle  to  the  climate  of  a  bleak,  hilly  coun- 
try would  be  to  greatly  endanger  their  safety.  An  Alderney,  a  Short- 
horn, a  Hereford,  or  even  a  Sussex  or  a  Devon  beast  might  not  main- 
tain its  condition  where  a  Polled  Angus,  a  Welsh  Bunt,  or  a  Scotch  Kyloe 
would  gain  flesh.  In  such  places,  and  upon  a  poor,  thin  pasture,  no 
race  of  cattle  imported  from  good  herbage  and  a  warm  and  well-shel- 
tered district  can  be  expected  to  pay  the  way  without  considerable 
outlay  in  artificial  food.  An  improved  breed  will,  to  some  extent,  have 
lost  those  characteristics  which  at  one  time  adapted  the  animals  to  a 
rougher  life,  the  thick  pelt  or  hide,  the  coarse  hair,  and  abundance  of 
bone  and  muscle. 

In  selecting  an  animal  for  breeding  or  fattening,  it  is  advisable  to 
look  for  a  moderately  small  head  and  a  placid  countenance ;  a  fine  muz- 
zle, with  good  open  nostrils ;  length  in  the  neck  and  depth  in  the 
shoulders ;  a  broad  and  straight  back  and  a  good  round  barrel ;  width 
across  the  loins  and  between  the  fore  legs;  large  girth  behind  the 
shoulders,  and  full  and  heavy  flanks.  With  such  points  we  may  expect 
to  rear  and  fatten  stock  capable  of  laying  the  greatest  amount  of  meat 
upon  the  prime  parts.  The  hide  of  such  an  animal  should  be  mellow 
H.  Ex.  51 6 


82  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

and  covered  with  soft  and  glossy  hair,  and  the  bone  should  not  be 
coarse. 

The  form  of  a  beast  is  a  matter  of  primary  importance.  In  the  Short- 
horn, the  Hereford,  and  the  improved  Angus,  we  have  this  in  perfec- 
tion. The  wide  and  level  hips  are  accompanied  by  a  massive  loin  and 
deep,  long,  and  square  quarters.  The  springing  ribs  give  to  the  body 
nearly  a  vertical  section.  In  a  perfect  beast  the  breast  should  stand 
prominently  out  between  the  fore  legs,  coming  down  almost  upon  a 
level  with  the  knee-joint.  Given  a  wide  back  and  a  good  wide  breast, 
and  most  other  good  points  are  insured.  When  well  fed  the  flank  of 
such  a  beast  in  handling  appears  to  drop  into  the  fingers.  It  will  prove 
to  be  a  grazier's  without,  a  butcher's  within. 

In  the  matter  of  breeding  for  economical  meat  production,  the  cardi- 
nal point  to  be  kept  in  view  is  early  maturity.  Under  present  circum- 
stances of  farming,  with  higher  rents  than  of  yore,  heavier  expenditure 
on  labor,  increased  taxation,  and  a  score  of  other  ills  to  which  farm- 
ing is  heir,  early  maturity  in  the  animal  and  the  production  of  the 
largest  amount  of  meat  with  the  smallest  amount  of  offal  should  be  the 
aim  of  the  breeder  and  the  grazier.  Close  observation  will  generally 
convince  us  tha&  most  of  our  races  of  cattle  and  classes  of  sheep  have 
some  peculiar  properties  which  especially  adapt  them  to  the  districts 
in  which  they  have  been  bred  and  grazed  for  generations.  This  fact 
should  not  be  lost  sight  of.  But  in  selecting  the  improved  breed  of 
each  kind  we  obtain  the  best  meat-producers.  This  remark  applies  to 
cattle,  to  sheep,  and  to  pigs  alike.  In  such  the  active  or  even  rest- 
less habits  of  the  original  breeds  have,  by  selection,  regular  atten- 
tion, and  good  feeding,  yielded  to  docility,  or  in  some  instances  even 
to  a  certain  sluggishness  highly  fovorable  to  fattening.  Easy  access  to 
food  has  reduced  the  proportions  of  bone  and  muscle,  so  that  a  pure- 
bred and  a  high-bred  beast  is  often  the  best  manufacturer  of  meat  from 
any  given  amount  of  fodder,  roots,  corn,  and  cake.  The  advantages  of  a 
pure  breed  or  a  first-cross  are  numerous.  There  are  few  greater  disap- 
pointments than  for  a  favorite  cow  to  breed  back. 

Age  for  breeding. — Upon  the  most  contested  point  of  the  earliest  age 
for  breeding  we  have  valuable  opinions  from  many  well-known  author- 
ities. Mr.  Thomas  Duckham,  M.  P.,  himself  an  eminent  breeder  and 
exporter  of  Herefords,  in  a  lecture  given  before  the  Brecoushire  Cham- 
ber, quoted  the  opinion  of  Dr.  Hitchman,  chairman  of  the  Derbyshire 
Agricultural  Society,  to  the  following  effect :  That  the  desire  for  pres- 
ent advantage  in  breeding  leads  to  great  evils  in  the  'future.  By 
placing  animals  too  young  into  breeding  condition  you  tax  nature  too 
heavily,  and  two  evils  ensue — the  parent  is  stunted,  and  the  progeny  is 
smaller  than  it  otherwise  would  be.  When  nature  is  busily  employed 
adding  to  the  growth — i.  e.,  to  the  size  and  completion  of  every  muscle, 
bone,  and  viscera  of  the  animal — every  particle  that  goes  to  the  build- 
ing up  of  the  animal  system  being  derived  from  the  blood  of  that  animal, 
the  blood  being  supplied  with  thotee  materials  exclusively  from  the  food 
which  is  taken  into  the  stomach  and  digested,  every  organ  of  the  body 
(the  stomach,  the  liver,  lungs,  heart,  &c.),  being  taxed  to  the  utmost  to 
fabricate  the  necessary  materials  for  the  growing  muscles,  ligaments, 
and  bones  of  the  young  animal,  by  causing  this  creation  to  be  im- 
pregnated at  such  an  early  period  in  its  growth  you  call  a  new  set  of 
organs  and  functions  into  activity  j  and,  further,  you  call  another 
creature  into  existence,  having  like  structures  to  be  built  up.  But 
while  you  do  this  you  cannot  add  to  the  digestive  or  the  assimilative 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  83 

powers  of  the  animal;  you  have  no  more  material  with  which  to  supply 
the  two  bodies  than  you  had  for  the  one. 

Individual  cases  of  success  from  early  breeding  may  be  quoted,  but 
the  general  results,  as  ascertained  over  wide  areas,  are  against  it.  The 
certain  results  of  breeding  from  heifers  at  too  early  an  age  will  be  a  race 
of  cattle  diminished  in  size  and  weakened  in  constitution.  From  2| 
years  to  3  years  old  is  quite  early  enough  for  a  heifer  to  calve  if  she  is  to 
'be  the  mother  of  a  long  line  of  noble  animals.  And  no  bull  can  be 
freely  used  without  injury  until  he  approaches  two  years  old.  In  any 
system  of  breeding  the  time  for  dropping  calves  must,  to  a  great  extent, 
be  regulated  by  the  accommodation  afforded,  and  by  the  length  of  time 
which  the  animals  are  to  be%ept  upon  the  land  before  feeding  out  or 
breeding.  For  economical  meat  production  I  know  no  time  preferable 
to  the  very  early  spring.  Cows,  when  not  required  for  the  dairy  and 
in-calf  heifers,  can  be  cheaply  kept  in  the  straw-yard  during  the  winter 
if  they  are  to  calve  down  in  the  spring;  and  thus  more  bullocks  can  be 
fattened  out  upon  the  fodder  and  the  root  crops.  But  if  the  breeding 
animals  are  turned  upon  really  good  pasture  during  the  summer  when 
they  are  in  calf,  they  frequently  lay  on  fat  and  produce  puny  calves. 
Where  the  progeny  is  to  go  out  as  a  fat  steer  under  three  years  old,  this 
time  of  calving  is  well  adapted,  as  it  gives  the  animals  three  summers 
at  grass  and  only  two  winters  in  the  yard. 

Before  calving,  exercise  in  good  open  yards  is  far  preferable  to  tying 
up  in  stalls.  Too  high  a  condition  at  the  time  of  calving  is  apt  to  pro- 
duce inflammation,  resulting  in  milk  fever  and  speedy  death.  When 
the  eye  at  such  a  period  has  a  glassy  appearance  some  aperient  medi- 
cine should  be  instantly  given.  About  half  a  pound  of  Epsom  salts, 
with  some  powdered  ginger  and  a  littTe  sulphur  and  niter,  will  answer 
the  purpose  if  given  in  time. 


0.— STOCK-FEEDING. 

Food  of  young  stock. — Food  of  young  stock  must  be  essentially  bone 
and  muscle  forming,  and  it  is  well  known  that  the  continuous  grazing 
of  pastures  by  young  stock  and  by  dairy  cows  very  rapidly  exhausts 
the  bone-earths,  so  that  the  laud  deteriorates  and  becomes  year  by 
year  less  adapted  to  rearing  or  dairying.  Consequently,  the  ultimate 
success  of  either  system  pursued  for  any  length  of  time  upon  the  same 
land  must  depend  very  much  upon  the  feeding  of  artificial  food  or  upon 
top-dressing.  A  cow  in  full  milk  and  yielding  750  gallons  a  year  gives 
up  in  that  milk  the  earthy  ingredients  of  33  pounds  of  dry  bones.  If  this 
milk  be  sold  off  the  farm'or  be  made  up  into  butter  and  cheese  for  mar- 
ket, of  course  the  whole  of  it  is  lost  to  the  land;  and  as  this  loss  is 
equal  to  30  pounds  of  common  bone-dust,  and  eve^y  calf  reared  may  be 
considered  to  carry  away  another  10  pounds  per  annum,  the  condition 
of  such  pastures  can  be  kept  up  only  by  supplying  in  some  form  to  the 
land  the  ingredients  of  50  pounds  of  bone-dust  every  year.  It  is  well 
known  that  in  the  animal  rapid  growth  and  quick  fattening  are  opposite 
qualities ;  so,  to  encourage  both,  the  muscle  and  bone  forming  constitu- 
ents arid  the  fat-forming  elements  must  be  given  at  the  same  time.  In 
a  general  way,  with  liberal  feeding,  the  animal  makes  more  progress  up 
to  two  years  old  than  ever  afterwards.  With  an  animal  in  its  natural 
state,  the  waste  of  the  body  is  just  counterbalanced  by  the  food  con- 
sumed. All  excess  of  food  beyond  waste  goes  to  form  bone  and  muscle 
in  the  growing  animal  and  fat  in  the  mature  one. 


84  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

The  object  of  the  meat  producer  should  be,  by  a  liberal  supply  of  food 
beyond  natural  requirements,  not  only  to  maintain  this  equilibrium, 
but  also  to  create  an  artificial  condition  favorable  to  the  production  of 
fat.  When  the  ox  is  thoroughly  fattened  every  cell  throughout  its  cell- 
ular tissue  is  well  filled.  In  the  beef  the  fat  will  be  firm  and  solid  and 
of  a  rich  creamy  color.  The  fat  in  mutton  is  whiter  and  greater  in  pro- 
portion to  the  carcass.  In  pork  the  proportion  ;is  still  greater.  The 
more  we  restrain  the  movements  of  the  body  the  greater  is  the  aptitude 
for  fattening.  Contentment  aids  the  formation  of  fat.  Violent  exercise, 
by  stimulating  the  lungs,  consumes  the  fatty  matters.  The  size  of  the 
lung  has  a  marked  influence  upon  fattening.  A  large  lung,  developed 
by  abundant  exercise,  burns  away  the  beat-producing  matter  and  re- 
tards fattening.  On  the  other  hand,  a  small  lung  and  a  small  liver, 
though  they  render  the  possessor  much  more  delicate,  are  favorable  to 
fattening.  In  animals  nature  provides  in  a  time  of  plenty  for  some  of 
their  requirements  in  a  time  of  scarcity.  Starch  and  sugar  maintain 
heat  and  vitality,  but  unless  there  is  a  supply  of  the  fats  and  oils  the 
progress  will  be  slow,  because  the  maintenance  of  the  vital  principles 
taxes  the  latter.  All  vegetable  foods  vary  with  the  age  of  the  plants 
yielding  them  and  the  soil  they  grow  upon.  Hence  the  care  necessary 
in  selecting  seeds  for  laying  down  pastures  and  in  cutting  and  harvest- 
ing hay  and  straw.  When  grass  is  comparatively  young  it  abounds  in 
flesh-forming  substances  and  in  sugar.  As  the  plant  ripens  the  sugar 
becomes  changed  into  starch  and  the  starch  into  wood  fiber.  This 
shows  the  desirability  of  cutting  all  grass  crops  for  hay  before  they  are 
fully  ripened.  Cattle  fed  upon  over-ripened  hay  have  to  consume  some 
13  or  14  per  cent,  more  of  indigestible  woody  fiber. 

Value  of  various  feeds.— •  Some,  experiments  in  feeding  with  hay  alone 
have  shown  that  in  a  large  ox  the  store  condition  may  be  maintained 
by  giving  it  about  one-fiftieth  of  its  own  weight  per  day,  or,  if  working, 
one-fortieth.  A  fattening  ox,  having  nothing  else,  will  consume  from 
one-twentieth  to  one-twenty-fifth  of  its  live  weight,  according  to  the 
degree  of  fatness  it  has  attained.  Sheep  are  said  to  consume  about 
one-thirtieth  part  of  their  live  weight  of  hay  per  day.  These  figures 
will  show  us  that  when  hay  commands  a  good  price  in  the  market  it  is 
not  advisable  to  use  it  in  any  large  quantity  aloue  as  a  meat  producer. 
With  hay  slightly  moldy  or  much  weathered,  the  process  of  steaming 
chaff,  with  an  admixture  of  some  maize  meal,  finely  ground  linseed- 
cake,  or  even  bran,  renders  it  more  palatable  and  much  more  nutritious, 
as  it  greatly  increases  its  digestibility.  New  hay  is  unwholesome  and 
innutritions  as  compared  with  good  old  hay.  After-math  hay  is  better 
adapted  for  cattle  than  for  horses.  Straw  is,  perhaps,  less  in  favor  than 
formerly  as  a  cattle  food. 

TJngenial  seasons,  wet  harvest,  and  blight  and  mildew  in  the  crops 
have  lessened  our  dependence  upon  it,  and  the  high  price  it  has  of  late 
years  realized  in  the  market  has  placed  ifc  more  on  a  par  with  hay  for 
feeding  out.  But  the  practice  of  cutting  down  large  quantities  of  it  as 
it  comes  fresh  from  the  threshing-machine  in  the  summer  time,  mixing 
with  a  ton  of  the  cut  straw  about  a  hundred  weight  of  green-cut  fodder 
and  a  bushel  of  salt,  is  kept  up  in  many  places  ;  and  when  the  admix- 
ture is  properly  made  so  as  to  produce  a  slight  fermentation,  it  makes  a 
very  economical  winter  feed.  The  fermentation  in  straw  increases  its 
albumen  about  one  per  cent,  and  its  feeding  value  as  much  as  25  per 
cent.  Green  oat  straw  and  pea  straw  fed  out  together  are  but  little  in- 
ferior to  hay.  The  oat  straw  of  Scotland,  where  the  crop  is  cut  much 
greener  than  onrs?  far  surpasses  that  of  this  country  in  feeding  proper- 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  85 

ties.  Oat  straw  and  turnips  in  Aberdeenshire,  without  hay,  corn,  or  cake, 
fatten  many  a  good  ox  for  the  London  market.  With  good  oat  straw 
ad  libitum  and  an  allowance  of  10  stone  of  white  turnips,  or  7£  stone 
of  swedes,  a  well-bred  steer  will  fatten  rapidly.  Or,  if  7  or  8  pounds  of 
mixed  bean  ineal  and  linseed  cake  be  giuen,  one-half  of  the  roots  may 
be  withdrawn.  A  ton  of  such  straw  cut  up  and  slightly  fermented, 
with  an  addition  of  200  pounds  of  good  linseed  cake,  is  equal  in  feeding 
properties  to  a  ton  of  the  best  hay.  There  are  great  advantages  to  be 
derived  from  a  proper  admixture  of  foods  as  well  as  from  judicious  and 
progressive  changes.  But  all  changes  should  be  both  gradual  and  pro- 
gressive if  we  are  to  receive  the  maximum  of  benefit  from  them. 

Carefully  conducted  experiments  have  demonstrated  that  under  ordi- 
narily favorable  circumstances  the  consumption  by  a  steer  or  bullock 
of  either  8  pounds  of  bean  meal  or  of  0  pounds  of  linseed  cake  will  pro- 
duce one  pound  increase  in  the  live  weight  of  the  animal,  but  if  these 
foods  are  used  in  combination,  i.  e.,  if  8  pounds  of,  the  one  be  fed  out 
with  6  pounds  of  the  other,  the  increase  in  the  live  weight  of  the  animal 
will  be  not  2  pounds,  as  we  might  expect,  but  4  pounds  ;  a  conclusive 
proof  that  judicious  admixture  is  the  economical  system.  In  the  pres- 
ent instance  the  linseed  cake  is  eminently  a  fat-producing  food,  and  the 
bean  meal  a  flesh-forming  one.  A  chemical  analysis  of  foods  compared 
with  the  actual  results  obtained  from  practice,  proves  that  we  may  ob- 
tain a  pound  of  flesh  from  every  given  number  of  pounds  of  dry  nutri- 
tive matter  which  those  foods  contain.  With  the  ox  ifc  takes  12  or  13 
pounds  of  nutrition  to  yielc^ra  pound  of  flesh ;  with  the  sheep,  9  to  10 
pounds ;  and  with  the  pig,  from  4  to  6  pounds.  Thus  100  pounds  of 
swedes  contain  90  pounds  of  water,  and  are,  consequently,  when  fed  off, 
equal  to  the  production  of  about  a  pound  of  flesh.  One  hundred  pounds 
of  Indian  corn  or  maize,  containing  only  13  pounds  of  watery  substances, 
will  produce  about  9  pounds  of  flesh.  Again,  it  has  been  ascertained 
by  careful  experiments  that  equal  mixtures  of  maize,  peas,  and  oats, 
though  7  per  cent,  lower  in  nutritive  qualities  than  corn  alone,  may  be 
fed  out,  weight  for  weight,  with  like  results. 


D.— STOCK— WEIGHT  AND  MEAT  YIELD. 

Measure,  weight,  and  yield  of  meat. — An  accepted  theory  is  that  14 
pounds  of  live  weight  in  sheep  will  yield  9  pounds  of  meat  and  5  pounds 
of  offal,  and  14  pounds  of  the  live  weight  of  a  beast  8  pounds  of  meat 
and  6  pounds  of  offal.  But  the  proportion  between  the  live  weight  in 
the  animal  and  the  offal  it  will  produce  will  depend  very  much  upon 
the  size  of  the  animal  and  the  degree  of  fattening.  Other  things  being 
equal,  it  will  give  the  highest  percentage  of  meat  in  the  greater  weight. 
A  well-bred  and  well-fed  bullock  of  120  imperial  stone  live  weight  may 
be  estimated  to  yield  from  61  to  64  per  cent,  of  beef.  If  the  same  an- 
imal be  fed  up  to  140  or  160  stone  of  beef  it  would  probably  yield  near 
68  per  cent,  of  beef,  whereas  one  of  only  70  or  80  stone  would  not  yield 
more  than  57  to  58  per  cent.  In  each  case  a  well-bred  heifer  of  the 
same  weight  will  exceed  the  steer  in  its  beef-producing  qualities  by  2 
or  3  per  cent.  Newly-shorn  sheap,  weighing  about  12  stone,  would 
average  from  63  per  cent,  to  65  per  cent.,  and  in  proportion  for  larger 
weights  if  at  the  same  time  the  breed  be  not  one  of  the  coarsest.  The 
more  finished  the  feeding  the  higher  the  percentage  of  meat  to  offal  in 
everything.  ».  :  - 


86  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

A  tolerably  correct  estimate  of  the  weight  of  a  beast  may  be  ascer- 
tained by  measurement,  and  the  process  is  not  a  difficult  one.  But 
whoever  undertakes  to  solve  the  problem  in  this  way  should  himself  be 
a  good  judge  of  a  beast,  and  should  know  something  as  to  the  length 
of  time  the  animal  has  been  in  the  stalls,  the  kind  of  food  supplied,  and 
the  characteristics  of  the  breed.  Cattle  which  fatten  at  an  early  age 
lay  on  more  fat  externally,  whereas  the  late-fattening  breeds  have  more 
internal  fat. 

The  method  of  measurement,  as  summarizedjby  .Cartels  is  to  take  the 
girth  immediately  behind  the  shoulder,  drawing  the  tape  fairly  tight; 
then  take  the  length  from  the  shoulder  to  the  tail  end,  each  place  being 
determined  by  an  imaginary  perpendicular  line  let  fall  and  clearing  the 
fore  and  hind  quarters  respectively.  Square  the  girth  in  feet,  and  mul- 
tiply the  result  by  the  length  and  the  product  again  by  a  decimal  se- 
lected from  the  following :  A  moderately  fat  beast  0.23 ;  fat  0.25;  prime 
0.26;  very  fat  0.27.  The  result  gives  the  weight  in  imperial  stones. 
But  a  simpler  rule  is  to  multiply  the  square  of  the  girth  in  inches  by 
the  length  in  inches  and  divide  the  product  by  7238,  and  the  quotient 
will  give  the  weight  in  imperial  stones.  Another  rule  is  to  multiply  the 
square  of  the  girth  in  feet  by  five  times  the  length  in  feet  and  divide 
by  21,  and  we  have  the  same  results. 

(1)  EED-POLLED  •  CATTLE. 

The  Red-Polled  cattle  of  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  have  within  the  last 
two  years  gained  an  important  place  in  public  favor.  Interest  in  the 
breed  has  been  shown  to  such  an  extent  that  its  history  and  its  claim 
to  recognition  can  no  longer  be  said  to  be  a  mere  local  matter.  These 
circumstances  will  doubtless  be  accepted  by  my  readers  as  sufficient 
warrant  for  a  brief  notice  of  the  Eed  Polls. 

The  history  of  Eed-Polled  cattle  can  be  carried  back  well  into  the  last 
century.  Suffolk  had  from  time  immemorial  its  breed  of  Polled  cattle, 
producing  butter  which,  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  was  asserted 
to  be  "justly  esteemed  the  pleasantest  and  best  in  England."  Arthur 
Young,  in  his  "  Survey"  (A.  D.  1794),  defines  the  area  "  a  tract  of  coun- 
try 20  miles  by  12,  *  *  *  the  seat  of  the  dairies  of  Suffolk,"  which, 
he  said,  must  be  peculiarly  considered  the  headquarters  of  the  Suffolk 
Polled  stock,  though  he  found  the  breed  spread  over  the  whole  country. 
In  this  survey  we  get  the  first  accurate  description  of  the  breed.  Though 
Arthur  Young  makes  no  note  of  Norfolk  Polled  cattle,  yet  advertise- 
ments of  sales  held  in  and  from  the  year  1778  prove  that  dairies  of  such 
animals  were  numerous  in  the  county,  and  that  they  extended  from  the 
northern  boundary  of  the  Suffolk  "  headquarters"  well  into  the  center 
of  Norfolk. 

An  old  Elinham  tenant,  who  survived  till  1872,  recollected  Eed-Polled 
cattle  on  the  estate  so  long  ago  as  the  year  1780.  At  Shipdham  they 
were  greatly  valued  from  a  date  certainly  as  early.  At  Necton  they 
were  kept  from  a  remote  period.  The  predominant  breed  in  Norfolk  at 
that  time  (see  Marshall's  "  Eural  Economy  of  Norfolk,"  notes  written 
from  1780  to  1782)  was, however, a  "Herefordshire  breed  in  miniature" 
and  "  the  favorite  color  a  blood-red,  with  a  white  or  mottled  face."  Mar- 
shall, fortunately,  preserves  for  this  generation  a  record  of  the  process 
by  which  the  excellencies  of  this  now  extinct  old  Norfolk  blood-red  stock 
have  been  combined  with  the  proverbial  merits  of  the  Suffolk  Eed- 
Polled.  He  says  there  were  several  instances  of  the  Norfolk  breed  being 
crossed  with  Suffolk  bulls,  and  that  the  result  was  "  increase  of  size  and 
an  improvement  of  form." 


THE   UNITED -KINGDOM.  87 

Color. — Color  was,  ill  the  opinion  of  the  old  fanciers  of  Suffolk  Polls,  a 
distinctive  characteristic.  Mr.  M.  Biddell,  speaking  in  1862,  could 
"  recollect  the  time  when  no  other  color  than  red  would  be  looked  at  in 
a  Suffolk  cow,"  and  in  the  same  discussion  on  the  fyreed  it  was  admitted 
that  "  the  red  cow  had  established  the  breed."  Previous  to  that  meet- 
ing of  the  Suffolk  Agricultural  Society  there  was  a  tendency  being  de- 
veloped to  get  rid  of  the  color  distinction.  This  may  have  arisen  from 
the  remembrance  of  the  fact  that  "red  and  white,  brindle,  and  a  yellow- 
ish cream  color"  had  been  an  accepted  color,  as  representing  good  milk- 
ers. In  Norfolk,  as  has  been  said,  red  was  the  favorite  color,  but  in 
a  few  districts  sheeted  Polls  were  preferred.  The  fashion  has  during 
the  last  forty  years  set  steadily  in  one  direction.  The  red  which  is  now 
recognized  as  the  mark  of  excellence  is  a  deep,  rich  blood-red,  and  the 
spot  of  white,  which  Mr.  George  used  to  say  was  a  sign  of  good  breeding, 
has  been  well  nigh  crossed  out.  The  predominance  of  deep  red  shows 
plainly  the  degree  in  which  the  old  Norfolk  breed  has  affected  the  Polls, 
and,  on  the  contrary,  the  freedom  from  horns  and  from  white  on  the 
udder  and  face  is  evidence  of  the  persistence  of  the  Suffolk  Polled  char- 
acter. The  amalgamation  of  the  two  varieties — Norfolk  Polled  and  Suf- 
folk Polled — may  with  certainty  be  traced  from  the  year  1846.  Both 
counties  henceforth  met  in  an  honorable  competition  in  the  show-yard. 
Purchase  of  the  handsomest  and  truest  bred  red  stock  became  the  desire 
of  all  the  breeders.  The  result  of  the  zeal  was  soon  made  evident  not 
only  at  county  shows  but  also  at  Eoyal  meetings. 

Characteristics. — The  standard  description  of  Bed-Polled  cattle  was 
agreed  upon  by  the  breeders  in  the  autumn  of  1873,  after  my  proposal 
to  establish  a  herd-book  of  the  breed  had  met  with  ready  acceptance. 
This  standard  description  read  as  follows: 

Color.— Red;  the  tip  of  the  tail  and  the  udder  may  be  white.  The  extension  of  the 
white  of  the  udder  a  few  inches  along  the  inside  of  the  flank,  or  a  small  white  spot  or 
mark  on  the  under  part  of  the  belly  by  the  milk  veins,  shall  not  be  held  to  disqualify 
an  animal  whose  sire  and  dam  form  part  of  an  established  herd  of  the  breed  and  which 
upholds  in  all  other  essentials  this  "  standard  description." 

Form. — There  should  be  no  horns,  slugs,  or  abortive  horns. 

The  points  of  a  superior  animal  are  as  follows: 

Color. — A  deep  red,  with  udder  of  the  same  color,  but  the  tip  of  the  tail  may  be 
white.  Nose  not  dark  or  cloudy. 

Form. — A  neat  head  and  throat.  A  full  eye.  A  tuft  or  crest  of  hair  should  hang 
over  the  forehead.  The  frontal  bones  should  begin  to  contract  a  little  above  the 
eye,  and  should  terminate  in  a  comparatively  narrow  prominence  at  the  summit  of 
the  head. 

In  all  other  particulars  the  commonly  accepted  points  of  a  superior 
animal  are  taken  as  applying  to  Bed-Polled  cattle. 

Weight. — At  the  close  of  the  last  century  the  animals  when  fattened 
seldom  exceeded  fifty  stone  (720  pounds).  This  is  the  report  both  of 
Marshall  and  Young.  The  former  says : 

The  superior  quality  of  their  flesh,  and  their  fattening  freely  at  an  early  age,  do  away 
with  every  solid  objection  to  their  size  and  form. 

There  has  been  great  improvement  in  this  matter  of  weight  for  age, 
while  there  has  been  no  deterioration  in  the  quality  of  the  flesh,  butchers 
now,  as  then,  purchasing  the  Bed  Polls  readily,  because  they  die  well, 
and  the  meat  is  equal  to  the  best  Polled  Scot  or  Highlander.  A  few  of 
the  recorded  weights  of  fat  beasts  will  show  this: 

The  live  weight  of  a  three-year-old  steer,  of  the  Biddell  strain,  shown 
in  1876,  was  25  cwt.,  2  qrs.  ;  its  girth  nearly  9  feet.  The  return  of  this 
animal's  dead  weight  has  not  been  recorded ;  in  fact,  it  has  been  found 


88  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

most  difficult  to  get  sucli  facts,  though  they  are  most  useful  for  pur- 
poses of  comparison.  The  two  following  records  will,  however,  partially 
serve  this  end : 

Mr.  A.  Taylor's  Bed-Polled  steer,  first  prize  at  the  Smithfield  Club 
Show,  1 881  (aged  three  years  seven  months,  sire  Norfolk,  dam  Suffolk), 
had  a  recorded  live  weight  of  17  cwt.,  1  qr.,  1  Ib.  Its  dead  weight 
was  01  stone,  6  pounds  (1,280  pounds),  a  percentage  of  G6.74  of  the  live 
weight.  The  same  exhibitor's  heifer  (aged  three  years,  one  month, 
three  weeks)  had  a  live  weight  of  13  cwt.,  3  cjrs.,  14  Ibs.  Its  dead 
weight  was  72  stone,  7  pounds,  a  percentage  of  65.31  of  the  live  weight. 

Mr.  J.  J.  Colman's  prize  cow,  Fannie  (aged  ten  years,  three  and  a  half 
months),  which  had  produced  five  calves,  had  a  live  weight  of  17  cwt., 
22  Ibs.,  and  was  sold  by  public  auction  at  Ipswich  at  a  sum  which 
equaled  4.375$.  per  pound,  calculated  on  the  live  weight. 

The  dead  weight  of  a  three-year  nine-months  old  Norfolk  steer,  shown 
at  Norwich  in  1878,  by  the  Prince  of  Wales,  was  80  stone,  4  pounds; 
of  Mr.  A.  Taylor's  three-year  ten-months  old  steer,  first-prize  winner 
at  the  same  show,  111  stone,  12  pounds. 

This  record  is  nearly  equaled  by  that  of  a  bull  of  Mr.  Lofft's  breed- 
ing, which,  when  slaughtered  in  "fair  condition  only,"  gave  a  dead 
weight  of  110  stone. 

These  are  not  mentioned  as  exceptional  weights ;  they  happen  to  be 
available  because  they  were  recorded  at  the  time  of  slaughter. 

Portraits  of  Red  Polls. — Davyson  3d  48,  the  bull  shown  in  the  illus- 
tration, was  bred  by  Mr.  John  Hammond  of  Bale,  East  Dereham;  was 
sold  as  a  two-year-old  to  Mr.  J.  Foster  Palmer,  and  was  subsequently 
bought  at  auction  by  Mr.  W.  A.  Tyssen  Amherst,  M.  P.,  at  205  guineas. 
He  was  calved  in  August,  1873,  being  of  the  Davy  (H  1)  tribe,  and 
sired  by  a  bull  of  Powell  blood,  as  was  his  dam.  He  was  the  reserve  at 
the  Norfolk  show  of  1875,  and  since  that  year  has  never  been  beaten  at 
a  royal  or  county  show,  winniog  sixteen  first  prizes  and  six  cups. 
Dolly  (No.  2),  calved  November  3, 1879,  the  older  of  the  two  females  in 
the  illustration,  was  in  Mr.  Column's  cup  collection  in  1881,  and  again 
in  1882.  In  each  year  she  was  first  in  her  class,  and  last  year  she  also 
won  the  cup  offered  for  the  best  Eed-Polled  cow  or  heifer  at  the  Nor- 
folk show.  She  is  a  heavy-fleshed  animal,  inheriting  that  character- 
istic from  her  great-great-granddam,  Minnie,  the  foundress  of  a  Necton 
tribe,  and  herself  the  daughter  of  the  Eed-Polled  bull  which  won  first 
prize  at  the  Norwich  Royal  in  1849.  This  Minnie  tribe  realizes  high 
prices,  and  is,  as  a  rule,  very  good  both  for  milk  and  for  flesh.  The 
sire  of  Dolly,  and  also  of  the  other  female  in  the  illustration,  was  Rufus, 
a  bull  of  Powell's  famous  Eose  tribe,  bred  by  the  late  Lord  Sondes. 

Silent  Lady  (O  9),  calved  December  18,  1880,  the  yearling  heifer 
shown  in  the  illustration,  was  also  in  Mr.  Col  man's  cup  collection  of 
1882.  She  traces  back  to  one  of  Sir  E.  Kerrison's  grand  cows — a 
superior  milker. 

Milk  yield  of  Red  Polls. — Mr.  Ewen  recently  gave  a  daily  return  of 
the  milk  yield  of  one  cow,  extending  over  eight  months,  and  the  monthly 
averages  of  four  others  ill  the  Didlington  House  Farm  herd.  The  cow, 
Davy  27th,  whose  daily  record  is  given,  is  of  the  same  tribe  as  Davy  24th, 
whose  average  yield  for  seven  months  was  stated  in  the  Almanac  of  the 
Live  Stock  Journal  to  have  been  42  pints  per  day.  Davy  27th  was  se- 
lected by  Mr,  Ewen  to  test  the  question  of  the  value  of  the  Gudnon 
escutcheon  theory  as  applicable  to  Eed-Polled  stock.  She  was  fed  in 
the  ordinary  Norfolk  fashion,  in  common  with  the  cattle  in  the  large  herd 


I 


it 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM. 


89 


owned  by  Mr.  John  Hammond.    The  following  is  the  result  of  the 
trial: 

Daily  yield  of  milk,  in  pints. 

[Davy  27th,  H  1.    Register  No.  1451.] 


Day  of  month. 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Apr. 

1  

48 

46 

41 

40 

39 

36 

34 

26 

2  

48 

46 

41 

40 

39 

36 

34 

24 

3  

48 

42 

41 

40 

39 

36 

34 

24 

4  

48 

42 

41 

40 

39 

86 

34 

24 

5  

48 

40 

41 

40 

39 

86 

34 

24 

6  

48 

40 

41 

39 

^.39 

36 

34 

23 

7  

48 

38 

41 

39 

39 

36 

34 

23 

g  

52 

38 

41 

89 

39 

36 

34 

23 

9  

56 

38 

41 

39 

39 

36 

34 

23 

10  

56 

38 

41 

39 

39 

36 

34 

23 

1]  

56 

38 

41 

39 

39 

36 

34 

23 

56 

38 

41 

39 

39 

38 

33 

23 

13 

56 

38 

41 

39 

39 

36 

83 

23 

14  

.">2 

37 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

23 

15 

46 

37 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

23 

1C  

Calved 

44 

37 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

23 

17 

44 

36 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

23 

18  

42 

36 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

22 

19 

40 

35 

40 

39 

39 

35 

33 

22 

20  • 

16 

40 

35 

40 

39 

39 

31 

33 

22 

21 

16 

40 

35 

40 

39 

39 

34 

33 

22 

22  . 

20 

44 

35 

40 

39 

39 

34 

33 

22 

23 

34 

48 

35 

40 

39 

39 

34 

33 

22 

24 

42 

48 

35 

40 

39 

89 

34 

33 

22 

25  : 

42 

48 

32 

40 

39 

38 

44 

33 

22 

26 

42 

48 

35 

40 

39 

38 

34 

33 

22 

27  

48 

48 

35 

40 

39 

37 

34 

33 

22 

28 

44 

48 

36 

40 

39 

36 

34 

33 

22 

29  

44 

48 

36 

40 

39 

36 

26  • 

22 

80  . 

48 

46 

36 

40 

39 

36 

26 

22 

31  

48 

36 

39 

36 

26 

22 

49  93 

37  45 

40  43 

39  1 

38  5 

35  0 

32  g 

22  8 

Daily  average  for  five  months,  41.04  pints ;  for  six  months,  40.1  pints ;  for  seven  months,  39.01  pints. 
Total  yield  from  September  1  to  March  31,  inclusive,  8,273  imperial  pints ;  to  April  30,  8,957  imperial 
pints. 

The  Didlington  herd  tests  were  carried  out  by  Mr.  John  Wallis,  the 
steward,  with  the  following  results  in  pints: 


Name  of  cow. 

Date  of  calving. 

September. 

October. 

November. 

December. 

January. 

February. 

March. 

g 
$ 

May  11021,  | 

Wild  Rose  Cousin  

August  28  (4th  calf) 

40 

38i 

98 

36 

341 

34 

32 

26 

1ft 

Golden  Locks 

September  7  (2d  calf) 

42 

41 

4U 

391 

37 

36i 

35 

32 

26 

Gentle  Rose   ......  ....... 

December  17  (3d  calf) 

34 

32i 

£r 

31i 

30J 

?8 

Pansie 

38 

36 

341 

33i 

^9 

In  England  systematic  tests  for  milk  and  cream  are  not  carried  out 
by  the  farmers.  It  is  only  natural  to  suppose  that  a  cow  whose  average 
yield  is  25  to  30  pints  of  milk  per  diem  during  two-thirds  of  the  year,  is 
more  profitable  than  one  which  gives  a  good  pail  for  half  that  period. 

Nancy  2nd  (K  19)  dropped  her  fourth  calf  on  August  9, 1881.  In  the 
week  ending  February  5,  1882,  she  gave  210  pints  of  milk;  percentage 
of  cream,  as  indicated  in  a  graduated  test-tube  after  the  milk  had  been 
at  rest  twenty-four  hours,  16.5.  Each  of  the  cows  in  the  herd  had,  in 
February,  a  daily  feed  of  4  pounds  mixed  linseed  and  decorticated  cot- 


90  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

ton-seed  cake,  4  pounds  bran,  1  bushel  carrots,  and  1J  bushels  barley 
straw  and  hay  chafl'.  This  cow,  Nancy  2nd,  when  in  full  profit,  August 
31,  was  giving  36  pints  of  milk  per  day. 

Davy  24th  (H 1),  shown  three  years  in  succession,  dropped  her  second 
calf  on  January  27, 1882,  and  gave  a  daily  average  yield  of  inilk  from 
that  date  to  August  31  of  42  pints ;  percentage  of  cream,  18.  Cherry 
Leaf  (V  3)  dropped  her  third  calf  on  May  16,  and  gave,  to  August  31,  an 
average  daily  yield  of  42  pints  of  milk.  Flirt  3d  (V  1),  a  cow  of  similar 
breeding  to  Cherry  Leaf,  gave,  six  weeks  after  producing  her  first  calf, 
a  yield  of  249  pints  of  milk  in  the  week ;  percentage  of  cream,  15.  Wax- 
work 6th  (U  9)  (the  tribe  in  which  the  bull  Slasher  is  included)  produced 
her  first  calf  on  January  8,  and  on  August  31  was  giving  milk  which 
yielded  21  per  cent,  of  cream. 

The  following  returns  are  from  the  £Tecton  Hall  herd  (Mr.  E.  H.  Ma- 
son's) : 

In  the  third  week  of  February  the  cows  were  on  pasture  (very  light  land)  most  of 
the  day,  with  a  few  roots ;  at  night  they  each  received  7  pounds  cotton  cake  and  spiced 
cake,  7  pounds  bran,  14  pounds  hay  and  cut  straw.  Nancy  3d  (N  o),  aged  six  years, 
dropped  her  calf  in  December,  1881 ;  on  February  18  yielded  28  pints  of  milk  at  two 
successive  milkings ;  percentage  of  cream,  16.  Pet  (N  1),  age  0  years,  dropped  her 
calf  January  22 ;  on  18th  February  yielded  23  pints  of  milk ;  percentage  of  cream, 
35.  Tulip  (N  4),  with  similar  conditions,  yielded  25  pints  of  milk  >  percentage  of 
cream,  34.  And  Tulip  (N  7),  aged  9  years,  which  dropped  her  calf  in  October,  1881, 
was  yielding  26  pints  of  milk  per  day  in  February. 

Tests  were  also  taken  at  the  end  of  August,  when  the  cows  were  all  at  grass,  with 
the  following  results : 

Empress  (N  4),  which  dropped  her  third  calf  on  April  10,  yielded  22  pints  of  milk 
per  day;  percentage  of  cream,  29.  Sultana  (N  5),  which  dropped  her  fourth  calf  on 
March  22,  gave  30  pints ;  percentage  of  cream,  26. 

The  butter  being  produced  by  eleven  cows  in  August  was  80  pounds,  and  120  pints 
of  new  milk  were  sold  per  week.  In  the  year  1881,  from  the  herd  of  13  Red  Polled 
cows,  8  heifers,  and  1  Alderney,  the  produce  of  marketable  butter  was  3,120$  pounds ; 
new  milk  sold,  725  gallons  ;  cpeam  sold,  101  pints  j  money  value,  independent  of  skim 
milk,  £260.  Jn  the  year  1882,  from  14  cows,  C  heifers,  and  1  Akleruey,  the  produce  of 
marketable  butter  was  3,434  pounds ;  new  milk,  686  gallons ;  cream,  13£  gallons.  The 
money  realized  was  £281  4s.  2d. 

Primrose  (K  6),  an  eleven-year  old  cow  in  Lord  Kimberley's  herd,  gave  on  winter 
feed  (hay,  chaff,  bran,  and  cake),  six  weeks  after  calving,  32  pints  of  milk  per  day, 
and  the  marketable  butter  produced  was  9  pounds  per  week. 

Mr.  Lofft,  Troston  Hall,  reported  the  testing  of  two  of  his  cows  of  the 
Handsome  (U  3)  tribe,  each  of  which  consumed  per  day  4  pounds  cotton 
cake,  2  pounds  Simpson's  meal,  6  stone  of  beet  root,  and  1 J  bushels  of 
chaff.  Handsome  5th,  four  months  after  calving,  yielded  28  pints  of 
milk  per  day  and  7  pounds  of  marketable  butter  per  week.  Handsome 
6th  yielded  32  pints  of  milk  per  day  and  10  pounds  of  butter  per  week. 

Mr.  G.  Gooderham,  Monewden,  uniformly  causes  his  cows  to  breed 
very  early,  and  the  secretion  of  milk  is  thus  fostered.  One  of  his  cows, 
Wild  Eose  of  Kilburn,  which  was  first  prize-winner  as  a  yearling  at  the 
Royal  meeting  of  1879,  produced  her  first  calf  when  wanting  two  days 
of  being  two  years  old.  Before  she  was  three  years  old  she  produced  a 
second  calf,  and  again  within  twelve  months  a  third.  Eight  weeks  after 
this  last  calf  was  dropped  she  gave  30  pints  of  milk  per  day  on  winter 
feed,  and  her  average  of  butter  was  0  pounds  per  week,  taking  all  the 
year,  since  she  never  goes  dry.  In  June  1882,  six  months  alter  calving, 
she  won  first  prize  at  the  Essex  show  as  a  milker ;  her  dam  won  a  like 
honor  at  the  Suffolk  show  in  June,  1 881. 

The  herd  of  Mr.  J.  J.  Colman,  M.  P.,  which  has  seven  times  in  eight 
years  won  the  cup  offered  at  the  Korfolk  show  for  the  best  collec- 
tion, includes  the  seven-year  old  cow,  Silent  Lass,  the  yearling  heifer 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  91 

shown  in  the  illustration.*  This  cow,  on  winter  feed,  gave  37  pints  of 
milk  per  day,  eight  weeks  after  calving.  In  May,  when  the  cows  were 
at  grass — very  poor  herbage,  growing  on  a  marsh — I  tested  the  quality 
.of  the  milk,  using  for  the  purpose  Heeren's  milk  tester,  the  "pioskop" 
of  the  Hanover  Vulcanite  Company.  The  milk  was  drawn  on  to  the 
pioskop  direct  from  the  udder,  when  milking  had  been  half  done.  Si- 
lent Lass,  five  months  after  calving,  yielded  milk  which  contained  more 
fatty  particles  than  are  found  in  rich  milk  as  marked  on  the  tester. 
Even  the  first  milk  drawn  from  the  udder  of  Dolly,  six  months  after 
calviug,  was  "normal"  according  to  the  tester,  and  her  average  yield 
was  very  rich,  as  was  also  the  yield  of  the  other  cows  tested,  Rosa  (P  3), 
seven  months  after  calving,  and  Eosebud  2d  (K  17),  nine  months  after 
calving. 

Mr.  Garrett  Taylor's  large  herd  at  Whitlingham,  near  jSTorwich,is  kept 
exclusively  for  the  supply  of  milk  to  customers  in  the  city.  The  cafes, 
which  have  a  large  demand  for  the  article,  have  familiarized  the  public 
with  the  fact  that  the  milk  of  the  Red-Polled  cattle  is  exceptionally  rich. 
One  of  the  Whitlingham  cows,  on  winter  feed,  five  weeks  after  calving, 
gave  32  pints  of  milk  per  day ;  another,  27  pints. 

Mr.  B.  Stiinpson,  of  Morton,  reported  two  of  his  cows,  on  winter  feed, 
as  yielding  daily,  Cheerful,  ten  weeks  after  calving,  30  pints  of  milk,  and 
Silky,  six  weeks  after  calving,  26  pints.  The  butter  made  from  their 
milk  amounted  to  14J  pounds  per  week. 

A  four-year  old  cow  of  the  Eaton  strain,  in  Mr.  J.  F.  Rogers7  herd,  at 
S  waning  ton,  yielded,  five  weeks  after  calving,  on  very  poor  food—hay, 
pulped  swedes,  and  cut  straw,  with  3  pounds  of  decorticated  cotton 
cake — 28  pints  of  milk  per  day.  His  herd  of  seven  cows  (six  Red-Polled 
and  one  Shorthorn)  produced  in  the  year  ending  September  30, 1882, 
1,435  pounds  of  butter,  which,  with  milk  sold  amounting  to  £11  ISd.  105., 
made  the  total  return  £118  I5d.  3s. 

A  return  of  the  test  of  two  cows  of  theGlemham  strain  (Mr.Moseley's), 
already  mentioned  (in  Mr.  J.  M.  Spink's  herd,  Harpley),  gave  53  pints 
of  milk  as  ihe  yield  per  day  on  winter  feed,  and  23  pounds  2  ounces  01 
butter  per  week. 

Red-Polled  cattle  are  found  to  lay  on  flesh  rapidly  on  pasture  of  the 
poorest  character,  where  other  breeds  need  to  have  an  additional  sup- 
ply of  richer  food.  The  dry  temperature  of  Norfolk  and  the  poor  pas- 
ture seem  more  particularly  to  have  had  their  eifect  on  the  size  of  the 
stock.  The  first  cross  stock  sired  by  a  Red-Polled  bull,  nov  matter  of 
what  horned  breed  is  the  dam,  is  usually  red  in  color  and  polled  in  char- 
acter. Such  animals  when  fat  are  eagerly  bought  by  the  butcher.  I 
have  recently  seen  a  number  of  such  cross-breeds,  the  produce  of  a  Red- 
Polled  bull  and  a  pure-bred  Jersey  cow,  and  am  told  the  cross  is  an  ex- 
cellent one.  Some  of  the  animals  have  a  few  silver  hairs  mixed  with 
the  red  coat ;  all  were  polled  and  all  had  black  noses. 

The  chief  hindrance  to  the  extension  of  the  breed  exists  in  the  scarcity 
of  the  stock  which  has  in  great  measure  arisen  from  the  fact  of  rinder- 
pest having  a  few  years  ago  been  fatal  to  a  large  proportion  of  the  cattle 
then  in  the  more  noteworthy  herds.  Fashion  also  had  a  marked  effect- 
Shorthorns  and  Devons  were  at  one  time  in  such  favor  that  polled  cat 

*The  yearling  in  the  illustration  is  the  "  Silent  Lady,"  not  the  "  Silent  Lass,"  arid, 
according  to  Mr.  Long,  was  calved  on  tho  18th  of  December,  1880,  and  was  conse- 
quently only  about  four  years  old  at  the  date  on  which  his  report  was  written.  H 
would  therefore  appear  as  if  the  "  Silent  Lass"  here  referred  to  is  another  than  the 
cow  "  Si.1  exit  Lady"  shown  as  a  yearly  in  the  illustration,  or  that  an  error  has  been 
committed  in  the  ago  as  well  as  in  the  name.  (Note  by  the  Department.) 


92 


CATTLE    AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


tie  were  despised  and  their  merits  ignored.  With  registration,  how- 
ever, and  marked  progress  made  in  Bed-Polls  within  the  last  ten  years, 
the  shortness  of^nnmbers  is  being  in  some  measure  compensated  for, 
noblemen  and  gentlemen  now  sparing  no  pains  to  make  the  breed  a  suc- 
cess. 

Weight  and  measure  of  Red  Polls.— Mr.  Tyssen-Amherst,  M.  P.,  of  Did- 
lington  Hall,  has,  at  my  request,  weighed  and  measured  several  cattle 
in  the  Didlington  herd  with  the  following  results,  the  stock  living  en- 
tirely on  the  grass  of  very  poor  land : 


Name. 

Age. 

Weight. 

Length 
from 
point  of 
shoulder. 

Total 
length. 

Girth. 

BULL.  . 

Davyson  8cl        ..    .  .  .        ..  .  .  ...................... 

Years 
9 

Pounds. 
2  093 

Ft.  In. 
5      2 

Ft.  In, 
7    10 

Ft.  In. 
1    10 

cows. 
Davy  24th  (H  1) 

5 

344 

4      9 

6      9 

0      9 

Dolly  (P  9)                        .     .....  ... 

f,A 

320 

4      G 

6      4 

Wild  Briar  (B  9)  

r> 

436 

4    11 

6      8 

Pretty  Flower  (B  18)                                    . 

c 

427 

5    00 

6      7 

Pansie  (B  20)  . 

3 

281 

Bertha  (A  20)  

3 

354 

Cheerful  (K  19) 

7 

514 

5    00 

G      8 

Nancy  2d  (K  19)    . 

g 

650 

5      2 

6      6 

Countess  (Lll)  

3 

,350 

Dolly  (N  6) 

6 

472 

Nancy  (N'T  5)     . 

9 

649 

Satin  (T7)  ."  

3* 

,358 

4      8 

6      7 

6      9 

Norfolk  Witch  (W  14)  

5 

,387 

4      7 

G      7 

Poppy  (IJ3)  ,  ,f....,..r  „  

2| 

,484 

4    11 

6    10 

7      1 

Slasher,  577,  bred  by  Mr.  Lofft,  combining  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  blood, 
had  alive  weight  of  27  cwt.  (3,024  pounds)  at  the  age  of  four  years  seven 
months ;  girth,  8  feet  2  inches.  His  son,  Rollick,  558,  of  the  same  tribe 
as  Dolly,  No.  2  (see  illustration),  weighed  at  the  age  of  two  years  eight 
months  eighteen  weeks,  19  cwt.,  3  qrs.,  14  Ibs.  (2,226  pounds),  and  its  dead 
weight  was  100  stone  of  14  pounds.  The  bull  Cortes,  G45,  weighed  when 
one  year  eight  months  old,  12  cwt.,  20  Ibs.  (1,363  pounds);  eight  weeks 
after,  his  live  weight  was  12  cwt,  3  grs.,  9  Ibs.  (1,437  pounds) ;  girth 
6  feet  10  inches.  King  Egbert,  688,  at  fifteen  months  three  weeks, 
weighed  10  cwt.,  3  qrs.,  2  Ibs.  (1,206  pounds)  5  girth  6  feet  6  inches . 
Three  bull  calves  at  Didlington,  under  five  months  old,  all  the  get  of 
Davyson  3rd.,  had  a  live  weight  of  3  cwt.,  1  qr.  (364  pounds) ;  3  cwt., 
14  Ibs.  (350  pounds),  and  3  cwt.,  12  Ibs.  (348  pounds),  respectively. 
A  Davy  heifer  at  Didlington,  sired  by  Davyson  7th,  and  calved  January 
27,  1882,  had  on  May  31, 1883,  a  live  weight  of  8  cwt.,  1  qr.,  14  Ibs. 
(938  pounds) ;  girth  6  feet  1  inch.  A  Primula  heifer,  calved  January 
3, 1883,  weighed  on  the  following  May  31,  3  cwt.,  1  qr.,  20  Ibs.  (380 
pounds).  A  Red-Polled  calf  at  birth  has  been  found  to  weigh  3  qrs.,  10 
Ibs.  (94  pounds). 

Practical  experimental  breeding  of  Bed  Polls. — Mr.  B.  E.  Lofft,  of 
Bury  St.  Edmunds,  a  famous  breeder  of  the  Red-Polled  variety,  gives 
some  very  unusual  information.  He  says: 

My  farm  is  composed  of  drift  clay  and  sand,  or  both  intermixed,  and  rests  on  a  sub- 
stratum of  chalk.  The  mean  temperature  of  1883  was  48.6;  rainfall  26.19.  I  have 
never  tested  my  dairy,  but  only  a  few  cows,  on  request.  Good  cows  give  from  4  to  6 
gallons  of  milk  per  diem,  and  make  7  to  10  pounds  of  butter  per  week.  I  set  more  store 
upon  cows  milking  through  than  on  giving  a  large  quantity  after  calving.  We  have 
had  cows  that  have  not  been  dry  for  four  years,  but  this  is  of  course  exceptional.  I  am 
breeding  cattle  of  three  different  si7.es:  First,  a  large  size  more  exclusively  for  beef. 
Of  this  sort  a  bull  might  weigh  1  ton  to  1  ton  7  cwt.;  a  cow  from  15  to  17  cwt.,  and  a 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  93 

steer  at  two  years  old,  12  to  13  cwt.  Second,  a  middle-sized  animal  for  general  pur- 
poses, milk  and  beef  combined.  A  cow  of  this  sort  might  weigh  11  to  13  cwt.,  a  bull 
about  15  to  18  cwt.,  and  steers  at  two  years  old  in  proportion.  Third,  a  small-sized 
animal  exclusively  for  milk.  This  at  first  I  am  trying  to  breed  as  small  aa  I  possibly 
can,  with  an  abnormal  development  of  milk.  I  have  now  been  breeding  this  sort  for 
some  two  years,  and  I  fancy  I  shall  be  able  to  breed  animals  smaller  than  either  Kerry 
or  Breton  cows. 

I  have  now  been  breeding  Red  Polls  for  about  thirteen  years ;  my  present  herd  con- 
sists of  about  70  head  of  cows.  Up  to  this  time,  I  have  not  been  able  to  weed  out  as 
freely  as  I  could  wish,  as  Red  Polls  are  scarce.  Now,  I  shall  be  able  to  draft  a  num- 
ber for  fattening  purposes  every  year.  As  a  rule  I  only  sell  calves,  or  young  bulls  of 
about  two  years  old.  I  prefer  to  fattening  off  cows  to  selling  them  for  breeding  or  milk- 
ing purposes.  My  fat  steers  are  generally  sold  rather  under  than  over  two  years  of 
age ;  heifera  that  are  rejected  for  some  reason  or  other,  generally  have  a  calf  and  are 
fattened  off  at  three  years. 

I  consider  the  Red  Polls  to  be  a  color  variation  of  the  old  Suffolk  cow,  which  is  of 
a  light  yellow  or  pale  ginger  color,  and  I  fancy  it  too  is  a  color  variation  of  the  old 
original  White  Polled  cow  kept  by  the  monks,  and  now  in  a  few  instances  kept  tame 
in  noblemen's  parks.  I  have  the  mind  to  set  up  two  small  dairies  of  these  two  varie- 
ties ;  I  have  already  secured  some  and  got  the  promise  of  others.  My  present  herd  is 
comprised  of  about  equal  parts  of  blood  from  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  stocks.  I  am  in 
favor  of  line  breeding,  unless,  of  course,  it  shows  bad  results.  My  idea  of  breeding 
three  different  sizes  is  quite  contrary  to  the  usual  ideas  upon  the  subject,  but  for  the 
present  I  see  no  reason  to  regret  the  course  I  have  taken.  As  far  as  I  can  see,  judi- 
cious selection  is  more  prepotent  than  either  food  or  climate.  The  fact  that  I  hope, 
starting  with  the  same  blood  and  food  and  other  conditions  of  existence,  to  produce 
animals  that  weigh  over  1  ton,  down  to  animals  that  only  weigh  3  cwt.,  as  I  feel 
quite  certain  I  can,  points  to.  the  same  conclusion.  When  I  first  began  to  breed  Red 
Polls,  they  had  short  wire  coats,  but  now  they  have  long  silky  coats,  with  soft  mel- 
low skins.  As  far  as  I  can  see,  a  first-class  milking  habit  is  more  difficult  to  fix  in  a 
breed  than  any  other  characteristic  ;  the  material  may  bo  present,  but  one  cow  stores 
it  up  and  another  yields  it  up  to  the  milkman.  Cows  that  are  good  milkers  often 
breed  heifers  that  are  only  the  common  run,  although  put  to  good  bulls  out  of  good 
milking  strains. 

As  regards  the  proportion  of  lean  to  fat,  Red  Polls  have  on  tho  market  a  good  repu- 
tation, and  fetch  advanced  rates ;  some  price  as  much  as  a  shilling  per  stone  more  than 
Shorthorns. 

My  cows  are  fed  on  a  great  variety  of  food,  according  to  the  crops  of  the  year.  In 
summer  they  are  out  at  grass  from  May  to  October ;  at  times  they  have  a  bait  of  cab- 
bages or  turnips  on  tho  pastures,  with  2  to  3  pounds  of  cotton  cako  or  linseed ;  some- 
times lucern  in  tho  barn,  or  they  may  be  turned  out  to  clover.  In  winter  they  are 
fed  with  cake,  hay,  cabbages,  swedes  or  turnips,  or  gorse,  with  a  few  bushels  of  meal, 
just  as  it  may  happen.  Grains  as  well  as  malt  dust  is  good  food,  but  all  depends  on 
circumstances — such  as  homo  crop  or  cheapness  of  artificial  food. 

As  for  tho  working  powers  of  the  Red  Polls,  I  have  never  worked  them  myself,  as  I 
am  a  largo  horse  breeder,  but  they  can  bo  worked  with  a  collar.  I  have  seen  some 
working  in  America,  but  never  in  England. 

Since  the  above  was  written  I  have  received  the  following  informa- 
tion from  Mr.  Gooderham,  the  well-known  breeder  of  this  race,  whose 
cattle  are  so  famous  for  their  milking  qualities.  He  states  that  the 
annual  average  yield  of  milk  per  cow  is  about  1,000  gallons,  and  that  20 
pints  is  the  usual  quantity  required  to  produce  a  pound  of  butter.  He 
does  not  manufacture  cheese  and  is,  therefore,  unable  to  give  the 
quantity  necessary  to  make  the  like  quantity  of  that  article.  The  live 
weight  of  the  Eed  Polls,  he  informs  us,  is  from  1,400  pounds  to  2,000 
pounds,  at  maturity,  and  that  the  proportion  of  meat  of  a  fattened  steer, 
also  at  maturity,  is  nearly  equal  to  that  of  a  Scot.  His  land  is  com- 
posed mostly  of  heavy  clay,  and  his  grasses  consist  chiefly  of  old  past- 
ure. The  summer  food  of  his  Red  Polls  is  4  pounds  of  best  linseed  cake 
daily,  with  grass.  In  winter  he  feeds  them  upon  cut  hay,  turnips, 
swedes,  mangolds,  and  carrots,  or  cabbages.  In  the  early  part  of  the 
winter  he  prefers  feeding  them  with  two  bushels  of  swedes  and  carrots, 
and  with  the  like  quantity  of  mangolds  in  the  spring.* 

*  For  much  of  the  special  information  given  in  the  foregoing  report  on  Red  Polls, 
Mr.  Long  expresses  his  obligation  to  Mr.  Euren;  editor  of  the  Herd-Book,  and  to  Mr. 
Lofft,  the  famous  Suffolk  breeder. 


94  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

(2)  LONGHORN  CATTLE. 

The  Lougkorn  cattle,  as  a  distinct  breed,  became  famous  first  of  all 
in  the  district  of  Craven,  in  Yorkshire,  on  whose  phosphatic  soils  they 
attained  a  decree  of  inherent  vigor  and  hardiness  which  their  descend- 
ants have  faithfully  transmitted  through  many  generations,  in  \arious 
kinds  of  climates,  and  on  widely-differing  soils.  Long  before  the  Short- 
horns became  famous  outside  the  Teeswater  district,  the  Longhorns  had 
attained  a  proud  position  and  a  widely-extended  popularity.  During 
the  greater  part  of  the  last  century,  and  in  the  early  years  of  the  pres- 
ent one,  they  were  at  once  the  pride  of  wealthy  breeders,  and,  in  vary- 
ing degrees  of  purity,  the  practical  stock  of  dairy  farmers  in  the  mid- 
land counties  of  England.  In  Ireland  they  were  and  still  are  knovyn, 
in  contradistinction  to  the  modern  breeds  reared  there,  as  "  the  old  Irish 
cow." 

Though  the  Longhorns,  less,  as  well  as  more,  than  a  hundred  years 
ago  were  the  prevailing  cattle  of  the  midland  counties,  Derbyshire 
appears  to  have  been  then,  as  it  is  now,  the  stronghold  of  the  more 
famous  herds.  Sir  Thomas  Gresley,  of  Drakelow  House,  Burton-on- 
Trent,  appears  to  have  been  the  first  prominent  improver  of  Longhorns, 
and  he  took  "  delight  in  keeping  a  dairy  of  cows  similar  in  color  and 
shape "  before  the  renowned  Eobert  Bakewellwas  born.  Three-quar- 
ters of  a  century  ago,  Mr.  Princep,  of  Croscall,  is  said  by  Parkinson  to 
have  had,  perhaps,  the  first  dairy  of  cows  in  the  county  where  that  pre- 
eminence is  defined  to  mean  symmetry,  size,  and  aptness  to  fat.  The 
same  authority  tells  us  that  Mr.  Princep  had  500  guineas  offered  for  a 
two-year-old  bull,  and  30  (another  account  says  50)  guineas  a  cow  for 
the  use  of  his  bull  to  30  cows;  and  he  was  also  offered  £2,000  for  20 
dairy  cows. 

A  four-year-old  steer  of  his  weighed, when  killed,  248  stone  of  14  pounds 
to  the  stone ;  and,  in  addition,  there  were  350  pounds  of  fat,  while  the 
hide  weighed  177  pounds.  The  breed,  however,  had  previously  become 
supremely  famous  under  the  hands  of  the  greatest  of  all  breeders,  Mr. 
Bakewell,  of  Dishley,  in  Leicestershire,  whose  efforts,  eminently  success- 
ful as  they  were,  lay  in  the  direction  of  combining  in  the  same  animal  the 
four  great  qualities  of  beauty  and  utility  of  form,  quality  of  flesh,  and 
aptitude  to  fatten, which,  he  rightly  judged,  were  not  incompatible  with 
each  other;  But,  in  attaining  these  points,  he  wholly  neglected  the  no 
less  important  one  of  milk,  and  we  cannot  but  regard  this  omission  as 
a  national  misfortune,  for  numberless  other  breeders  have  been  taught 
to  sin  in  the  same  way.  Mr.  Lythall,  editor  of  the  recently  established 
Longhorn  Herd-Book,  makes  the  startling  assertion  that  to  this  line  of 
breeding  u  must  be  traced  the  decline  of  the  Longhorns  in  public  favor 
at  the  early  part  of  the  present  century."  This  is  quoted  as  a  warning 
to  the  Shorthorn  breeders  of  the  present  day. 

Yet  the  old  Longhorns,  even  many  of  the  highly  improved  ones,  were 
celebrated  for  their  milkiness,  less  though  for  quantity  than  for  qual- 
ity of  milk;  but  it  was  BakewelPs  one  fatal  misfortune  to  destroy  this 
reputation.  Youatt  says  of  him: 

Many  years  did  not  pass  "before  his  stock  was  unrivaled  for  the  roundness  of  its 
form,  the  smallness  of  its  bone,  and  its  aptitude  to  acquire  external  fat,  while  they 
were  small  consumers  of  food  in  proportion  to  their  size;  but  at  the  same  time  their 
qualities  as  milkers  were  very  considerably  lessened.  The  grazier  could  not  too  highly 
value  the  Dishloy  or  new  Leicester  Longhorn,  but  the  dairyman  and  the  little  farmer 
clung  to  the  old  breed  as  most  useful  for  their  purpose. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  95 

It  would  thus  appear  that  the  "unimproved"  Longtiorns  were  good 
milkers,  or  the  dairymen  and  little  farmers  would  not  have  thought  so 
much  of  them.  Whilst  Bake  well  was  alive  there  were  many  famed 
herds  of  Longhorns  within  an  hour  of  him  in  the  saddle,  but  in  less 
than  forty  years  after  his  death  there  was  not  an  animal  of  the  breed 
left  on  the  old  farm  at  Dishley,  and  not  a  dozen  within  a  circuit  of  12 
miles  from  it,  so  completely  did  the  loss  of  milkiness  disestablish  the 
old  breed  from  the  district  in  which  Bakewell  had  made  it  immortal. 

Three-quarters  of  a  century  ago  Mr.  Mundy,  of  Markeaton,  was  a  well- 
known  breeder  of  Loughorns,  and  it  is  related  that  one  of  his  cows, 
named  Thistle,  made  17  pounds  of  butter  a  week.  Mr.  Cleaver,  of  Leam- 
ington, tells  of  a  brindled  cow  he  knew  almost  as  long  a  time  ago  which 
filled  a  4  gallon  milk-pail  up  to  the  brim,  and  afterwards  gave  another 
quart  to  the  milkmaid ;  and  of  a  two-year-old  heifer  which  was  so  pro- 
lific that  in  ten  years  she  brought  thirteen  calves,  and  was  such  a  milker 
that  all  the  dairymaids  set  a  world  of  store  by  her.  Mr.  Shaw,  of  Frad- 
ley,  Old  Hall,  near  Lichfield,  says: 

A  Longliorn  cow  some  years  ago,  on  Lord  Bagot's  estate,  near  Rugeley,  had  such 
an  immense  udder  that  the  man  when  he  sat  down  to  milk  her  could  not  reach  across 
it,  and  had  either  to  milk  one  side  first  and  then  the  other,  or  two  men  would  be 
milking  the  same  cow  at  once ;  and  he  records  his  opinion  that  very  few,  if  any,  breeds 
of  cattle  excel  the  old-fashioned  Longhorn  for  milk. 

And  as  to  its  quality  he  says : 

Whenever  we  have  had  occasion  to  change  our  dairymaids  the  new  ones  have  in- 
variably been  struck  with  the  superior  quality  of  the  milk  and  cream  obtained  from 
our  Longhorus.  One  of  them  remarked,  "  Dear  me !  what  a  thickness  your  cream  is ; 
and  the  skimmed  milk  looks  as -good  as  the  unskimmed  did  where  I  last  lived ;  it  does 
not  look  at  all  blue,  and  the  other  did." 

The  maid  had  been  previously  living  where  a  large  herd  of  Short- 
horns was  kept. 

Mr.  K.  H.  Chapman,  of  St.  Asaph,  remarks  that  the  Longhorns  were 
numerous  in  some  parts  of  Wiltshire  forty  or  fifty  yea»s  ago,  and  they 
were  called  the  "  Spreads,"  the  "  Bradles,"  the  "  Crumbles,"  or  the 
"  Broads,"  as  the  forms  of  the  horns  indicated.  It  is  true  there  is  no 
sort  of  uniformity  either  in  the  length  or  form  of  the  horns  of  Long- 
horn  cattle.  It  was  said  of  them — 

They  were  distinguished  from  the  home  breeds  of  other  counties  by  a  dispropor- 
tionate and  frequently  unbecoming  length  of  horn.  In  the  old  breed  this  horn  fre- 
quently projected  nearly  horizontally  on  either  side,  but  as  the  cattle  were  improved 
the  horn  assumed  other  directions.  Ifc  hung  down  so  that  the  animal  could  scarcely 
graze,  or  it  curved  so  as  to  threaten  to  meet  before  the  muzzle  and  so  also  to  prevent 
the  beast  from  grazing  ;  or  immediately  under  the  jaw,  and  so  lock  the  lower  jaw; 
or  the  points  presented  themselves  against  the  bones  of  the  nose  and  face,  threaten- 
ing to  perforate  them. 

The  color  of  the  Longhorns  is  sometimes  the  opposite  of  ornamental, 
and  a  white  irregular  streak  commonly  runs  up  the  back  from  the  tail 
to  the  shoulders.  But,  as  a  rule,  they  are  picturesque  and  pleasing 
cattle,  the  color  being  most  commonly  brindle.  It  cannot  be  denied 
that  as  a  breed  they  possess  valuable  points.  They  have,  under  proper 
management,  early  maturity,  fatten  well  on  a  moderate  quantity  of 
food,  and  their  flesh  is  of  good  quality ;  and  while  some  of  them  are 
very  deep  milkers,  they  are  all  favorably  known  for  the  quality  of  the 
milk  they  give.  It  is  not  likely,  however,  that  they  will  ever  reattaiu 
the  position  they  formerly  held,  but  it  may  be  confidently  anticipated 
that  their  reputation  will  revive.  Indeed,  in  some  localities  and  with 
many  breeders  their  reputation  can  only  be  said  to  have  declined,  if  at 


96  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

all,  in  part  and  temporarily,  and  it  is  equally  true  to  «ay  that  there  are 
many  signs  of  an  extended  revival  of  the  ancient  reputation  of  this 
quaint  old  breed  of  cattle.  Many  splendid  specimens  have  been  and 
still  are  exhibited  at  the  Birmingham  fat-stock  shows,  and  it  is  hoped 
this  will  always  be  the  case,  for  to  Birmingham  is  due  the  credit  of 
having  stuck  to  the  old  breed  during  a  good  part  of  the  period  when  it 
was  left  out  in  the  cold  by  most  other  agricultural  shows.  The  number 
of  Longhorn  herds  is  increasing  in  the  midland  counties,  and  the  names 
of  many  gentlemen  mentioned  in  the  Herd-Book  index  are  an  ample 
guarantee  that  the  old  breed  will  not  only  not  be  let  die,  but  that  it 
will  again  be  helped  on  into  popularity. 

Characteristics  of  the  Lonyliorns. — The  characteristics  of  the  breed  are 
noteworthy,  for  it  possesses  a  character  of  its  own,  resembling,  however, 
the  Herefords  more  than  any  other  breed.  The  head  is  finely  cut,  but 
long,  and  tapers  well  towards  the  muzzle,  being  moreover  well  set  on- 
to a  thin,  shortish  neck.  The  horns  are,  except  in  the  bulls,  long,  fine, 
and  tapering,  hanging  well  down  by  the  cheeks  and  then  point  forward 
by  the  muzzle ;  the  usual  length  in  the  cows  and  oxen  is  from  2J  feet 
to  3  feet,  but  those  of  the  bulls  rarely  exceed  18  inches.  The  shoulders 
are  comparatively  fine,  but  well  set  on,  and  the  legs  show  good  bone. 
The  girth  is  for  such  cattle,  in  comparison  with  the  Shorthorns,  small ; 
but  the  loin  is  broad  and  the  hips  wide  and  outstanding.  The  chine  is 
rarely  full  except  when  the  animal  is  fattening,  and  then  it  will  put  on 
a  rare  amount  of  flesh  in  this  part.  The  thighs  are  long  and  fleshy,  with 
small,  clean  cut  legs.  The  hide  is  of  fair -thickness,  mellow,  and  soft  to 
the  touch.  The  flesh  is  of  fine  quality,  the  bone  plenteous,  but  not 
coarse,  and  the  ofi'al  small.  Regarded  as  graziers7  stock,  they  possess 
sterling  qualities  and  must  take  high  rank,  their  carcasses  carrying  very 
heavy  loads  of  beef.  They  fatten  rapidly  and  easily,  and  although 
scarcely  coming  to  maturity  so  quickly  as  the  Shorthorns  'they  never- 
theless approach  these,  their  supplanters,  very  closely,  leaving  very  lit- 
tle to  be  desired  in  this  respect. 

As  milkers,  one  admirer  of  the  breed  says : 

We  know  tliein  to  be  excellent  cattle,  as  witness  the  fact  that  the  majority  of  the 
pure  breed  Longhorn  herds  are  kept  as  dairy  cattle.  They  arc  free  and  long  milkers, 
the  milk  being,  as  a  rule,  superior  in  quality  to  that  of  Shorthorns.  Their  use  for 
crossing  purposes  is  not  very  extensive,  because  there  are  few  instances  in  which 
their  place  can  advantageously  be  taken  by  the  Durham,  and  it  seems  as  if  we  must 
be  content  to  use  them  as  a  pure  breed.  No  doubt  there  is  room  for  them,  and  we  are 
inclined  to  the  opinion  that  the  judicious  intermixture  of  a  little  of  the  Longhorn 
among  one  or  two  breeds  would  tend  to  reduce  that  fineness  of  character  which  is 
becoming  dangerously  general  in  some  of  our  best  kinds  of  cattle. 

With  regard,  however,  to  the  milking  value  of  the  Longhorns  as  a 
breed,  a  great  deal  cannot,  we  think,  be  said,  for  justly  esteemed  as  it 
formerly  was  it  has  of  late  been  comparatively  little  bred  for  this  pur- 
pose, the  Shorthorn  having  taken  its  position  in  the  dairy  in  almost  the 
whole  of  the  Longhorn  district;  but  there  are  numerous  instances  of 
great  milking  capacity  in  the  breed,  and^ve  believe  that  by  a  little  atten- 
tion in  a  judicious  crossing  and  in  cultivating  the  milking  power,  it 
could  be  raised  to  a  very  high  standard,  certainly  equal  and  possibly 
superior  to  the  Shorthorn. 

As  with  some  of  the  other  less  cultivated  breeds,  the  Longhorn  is  not 
now  bred  for  the  dairy.  There  are  a  few  isolated  cases  in  which  they 
are  used,  but  we  very  much  question  their  absolute  purity,  and  even  in 
these  cases  the  dairies  are  so  small  that  statistics  would  be  of  little 
value.  It  may  be  generally  stated,  however,  that  it  is  a  better  cheese- 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  97 

making  than  a  butter-making  breed,  and  does  extremely  well  upon  the 
rich  old  pastures  of  the  midland  counties  of  England,  which  are  not 
greatly  exposed  to  the  weather,  and  which  are  usually  of  a  stiff  loam,  with 
a  substratum  of  clay.  The  Longhoru,  which  lives  to  an  exceedingly  old 
age,  is,  moreover,  a  decidedly  large  breed,  and  in  the  year  1882,  at 
Birmingham,  the  winning  steer,  aged  3  years  7  mouths,  weighed  15f 
cvvt. ;  the  second  prize,  3J  years,  weighing  15J  cwt.  At  the  same  time 
the  first-prize  cow,  5J  years,  weighed  over  16  cwt. ;  the  second  prize,  a 
heifer,  aged  4J  years,  being  15£  cwt.  The  following  year,  at  the  same 
exhibition,  the  first-prize  steer,  3  years  8  months,  scaled  17  cwt,  the  sec- 
ond and  third  being  almost  as  large;  while  in  the  cow  class  the  first 
prize,  4  years  and  10  months  old,  weighed  13£  cwt.,  the  others  being  all 
larger. 

The  prevailing  color  of  the  best  exhibition  beast  is  brindle  and  white 
or  red  and  white,  the  former  being  preferred. 

As  may  be  expected  from  the  extraordinary  length  of  the  horns  of 
these  beasts  they  are  seldom  used  upon  the  farm  for  draft  purposes, 
although  their  docility  and  great  strength  otherwise  fit  them  for  such  a 
purpose;  but  the  farmers  in  the  district  in  which  they  are  chiefly  bred 
almost  to  a  man  prefer  horses. 

Productiveness  of  the  Long  horns. — The  system  of  feeding  is  generally 
that  adopted  with  the  Shorthorn,  cake  and  roots  being  the  principal  part 
of  their  diet,  and  both  suiting  them  admirably.  At  the  same  time  there 
are  differences  of  opinion  a^  to  the  quantity  of  turnips  given,  some 
breeders  preferring  a  minimum  quantity  with  a  maximum  quantity  of 
cake :  others  again,  and  it  must  be  confessed  without  much  reason, 
giving  an  enormous  quantity  of  roots  and  a  similar  quantity  of  cake  or 
corn.  It  was  the  custom  in  some  districts  not  very  many  years  ago  to 
compose  the  dairy  herds  of  Shorthorns  and  Halt'horns,  the  latter  of 
which  were,  for  the  most  part,  a  combination  of  Shorthorn  and  Long- 
horn  ;  but  of  late  years  very  little  of  the  Longhorn  element  has  been  in- 
troduced among  them.  Of  a  herd  of  25  to  35  of  these,  a  cow  would 
give  from  3  cwt.  to  4  cwt.  (the  long  hundred  of  120  pounds)  of  cheese 
during  the  season  of  about  seven  months,  the  price,  being  sometimes  as 
low  as  50  and  as  high  as  95  shillings  per  cwt.  Of  an  experiment  with 
6  Shorthorns  and  6  Longhorns  in  the  June  season,  it  was  shown  that 
whilst  the  majority  of  pounds  of  milk  was  152  pounds  to  135  in  favor  of 
the  Shorthorn,  the  cheese  curd  from  the  larger  quantity  was  only  14j 
pounds,  as  against  19 J  pounds. 

Another  experiment  with  36  Shorthorns  against  32  Longhorus  showed 
that  the  605  pounds  of  milk  from  the  former  made  66  J  pounds  of  curd 
and  that  the  553  pounds  from  the  latter  made  69  pounds.  The  plainest 
cows  are  often  the  best  milkers,  and  the  milk  from  a  seven  or  eight  year 
old  is  thought  to  be  the  richest.  In  winter  they  are  most  frequently 
kept  on  barley  straw  and  pulped  turnips,  with  hay  in  addition  near 
calviug  time.  The  calves,  which  generally  are  somewhat  difficult  to 
rear,  are  usually  dropped  in  March  and  April,  and  some  of  them  never 
suck  their  mother.  They  have  new  milk  from  t«he  first,  which  is  lessened 
when  the  cheese  season  begins,  and  gradually  they  come  to  oil-cake  and 
linseed  boiled  in  whey  or  the  overnight's  milk.  As  they  get  older  they 
become  heavy-fleshed  and  prove  themselves  well  fitted  for  the  butcher. 
For  the  food  which  the  Longhorn  consumes  it  will  certainly  give  as  good 
a  return,  and  generally  a  better,  than  other  beasts,  and  as  an  animal 
for  the  adornment  of  the  park  or  the  home  pasture  of  the  hall  or  grange 
it  will  be  found  most  suitable, 
H.  Ex.  51 7 


98  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

(3)  THE  SHORTHORN  CATTLE. 

The  Durham,  or  Shorthorn,  is  not  an  ancient  breed.  It  cannot  lay  claim 
to  such  antiquity  as  theLonghorn ;  for  while  the  Longhorn  seems  to  have 
been  the  aboriginal  cow  of  Ireland,  the  Shorthorn  is  a  cow  of  modern 
days. 

"  Diversities  in  appearance,  shape,  habits,  and  produce,"  says  a  well- 
known  writer  on  cattle  breeds,  u  have  arisen,  partly  from  modern  artifi- 
cial breeding,  but  chiefly  from  the  prolonged  and  combined  influences 
of  soil,  climate,  pasturage,  and  general  treatment."  The  centuries  that 
have  elapsed  since  the  dispersion  of  the  ancient  breed  of  cattle,  and  their 
long-continued  location  in  different  districts,  under  such  varied  condi-. 
tions  of  climate  and  pasturage,  have  produced  great  changes  in  the  ap- 
pearance of  members  of  the  same  race.  Especially  is  this  so  in  the  case 
of  the  cattle  whose  home  has  always  been  in  the  more  civilized  and  more 
highly  cultivated  parts  of  England.  Originally  of  a  shy  and  nervous 
disposition,  spirited  and  active,  of  hardy  constitution,  and  with  a  tend- 
ency to  roam  at  will,  they  have,  during  the  course  of  so  many  years  of 
intercourse  with  their  owners,  lost  much  of  their  hardiness  and  activity, 
and  also  much  of  their  nervousness  and  fear.  Eich  pasturage,  mildness 
of  climate,  protection  from  the  winter  storms,  the  increasing  use  of  grain 
and  artificial  foods,  and  the  general  improvement  in  cultivation,  has  had 
a  most  marked  effect  on  the  appearance  and  general  characteristics  of 
the  cattle4  brought  within  such  influences.  This  is  shown  in  the  devel- 
opment of  a  surprising  bulk  of  flesh  on  a  much  larger  frame.  The  suc- 
cessive conquerors  of  Britain — the  Eomans,  Saxons,  Danes,  and  Nor- 
mans — it  must  be  remembered, all  brought  with  them  cattle  from  their  own 
countries,  and  these,  becoming  domesticated,  were  mixed  and  crossed 
with  the  above,  and  were  finally  lost  in  the  resulting  race.  The  con- 
quered area  provided  an  improved  breed  of  cattle,  while  the  more  re- 
mote and  inaccessible  parts  of  the  Kingdom,  remaining  free,  bred  the 
same  animal  as  existed  in  the  early  days  of  British  history. 

About  the  year  1640  a  bull  and  some  cows  were  brought  into  Holder- 
ness  (East  Yorkshire)  from  Holland.  They  had  large  shoulders,  flat 
sides,  coarse  necks,  thick  heads  ;  their  valuable  points  were  small  and 
their  coarser  points  large;  yet  these  cattle  were  of  larger  bulk  and  the 
cows  better  milkers  than  were  then  known,  and  on  this  aecount  they 
were  greatly  esteemed  and  used  for  crossing  with  the  native  cattle. 
The  cross  soon  showed  great  and  lasting  improvement.  Holderness  is 
a  rich  grazing  district,  and  the  native  cattle  found  there  at  that  period 
were  of  the  best  in  the  land.  The  new  breed  thus  formed  by  the  admix- 
ture and  crossing  of  these  imported  animals  soon  asserted  their  superi- 
ority over  all  other  races.  Such  was  the  origin  of  the  Shorthorn. 

Another  source  of  the  Shorthorn,  and  in  some  degree  passing  the  prior 
claim  to  being  the  original,  was  a  race  of  cattle  which  from  time  imme- 
morial had  existed  in  Durham,  in  the  basin  of  the  Tees,  whence  they 
were  named  the  Teeswater.  In  color  and  appearance  they  resemble 
the  breed  of  the  present  day ;  they  had  a  good,  mellow  touch,  and  in 
butcher's  parlance  "killed  well;"  were  light  of  offal,  had  wide  carcasses 
and  deep  forequarters,  and  were  greatly  esteemed  by  all  who  were  ac- 
quainted with  them.  About  the  same  period,  or  a  few  years  later  than 
their  introduction  into  Holderness,  the  Dutch  cattle  were  also  imported 
into  the  valley  of  the  Tees  and  were  crossed  there  with  the  native  breed, 
giving  rise  to  the  Teeswater  Shorthorn,  or  Durham.  At  a  still  later  date 
numerous  bulls  were  imported  from  the  Continent,  principally  from  Hol- 
land. The  native  cattle  in  Yorkshire  and  Durham  were  crossed  with 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  99 

them,  and  the  new  breed  so  produced  received  the  name  of  the  Short- 
horn. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  the  history  of  the  breed  further.  As  it 
became  known  it  came  into  popularity  and  quickly  spread  and  multi- 
plied. About  the  year  1754  the  brothers  Gollings,  of  Darlington,  entered 
upon  a  new  departure  in  the  history  of  this  new  breed,  applying  Bake- 
well's  principle  of  selection  in  the  breeding  of  the  Shorthorn  ;  a  step 
which  produced  the  happiest  consequences  and  the  most  important  re- 
suits,  improving  the  frame  and  proportion  ;  of  the  cattle,  and  largely 
developing  and  increasing  their  milk  and  fattening  properties.  For 
many  years  they  followed  this  course,  and  when  the  herd  was  dispersed 
in  1810  the  prices  realized  at  its  sale  were  altogether  unprecedented. 
Since  then  much  has  been  done  by  many  persons  to  improve  the  breed. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  particularize  those  who  have  done  such 
great  service,  but  we  may  mention  the  names  of  Bates  (whose  great 
success  must  be  largely  b#  attributed  to  his  purchases  at  Collings's 
sale),  and  of  Booth,  the  founders  of  two  great  families  of  Shorthorns 
whose  fame  is  without  compare. 

The  points  of  the  Shorthorn. — The  color  may  be  entirely  red  or  entirely 
white,  or  a  mixture,  either  color  predominating,  but  not  in  spots.  The 
fashionable  color  has  varied  at  different  times.  Once  a  creamy  white 
was  all  the  rage  5  so  was  all  the  red,  and  the  flecked  roan,  but  a  good 
Shorthorn  cannot  be  a  bad  color  so  long  as  it  is  not  spotted.  The  skin 
around  the  eye  and  the  bald  of  the  nose  should  be  of  a  rich  cream  color, 
the  head  rather  small  in  proportion  to  size,  and  tapering  in  shape,  with 
a  fine  muzzle  ;  a  clean,  calm,  and  prominent  eye ;  horns  rising  near  the 
crown,  short,  smooth,  and  white,  but  moderately  sharp,  and  of  fine 
quality ;  the  head  should  be  well  set  on  a  deep  form  and  broad  neck. 
As  to  the  frame,  it  should  approach  as  exactly  as  possible  to  the  shape 
of  a  parallelogram,  from  whatever  direction  viewed;  the  back  per- 
fectly straight  and  level  from  the  neck,  just  below  the  horns,  to  the  top 
of  the  tail ;  the  shoulders  well  back  in  the  body,  and  the  brisket  pro- 
jecting in  short  rectangular  form.  The  top  of  the  shoulders  should  be 
perfectly  level  and  the  loins  wide  and  level  across  the  hock  bones ;  the 
hind  quarters  long  and  straight,  as  should  the  shoulders,  forming  perpen- 
dicular and  well-marked  lines ;  the  buttocks  to  the  hocks,  and  the  shoulders 
to  the  knees  full  and  well  developed,  but  below  the  bones  should  be 
fine  and  clean  and  clearly  formed ;  the  twist  full  and  wide ;  the  flank 
full  and  thick,  and  the  tail  moderately  fine,  and  not  too  much  covered 
with  hair.  The  ribs  should  be  inclined  to  the  shape  of  a  barrel,  but 
when  the  animal  is  seen  along  the  side,  it  should  appear  as  if  per- 
fectly straight  and  level  from  the  shoulder  to  the  buttock.  When 
seen  endwise,  it  should  be  equally  straight  and  level  from  the  top  of 
the  neck  to  the  root  of  the  tail,  and  also  underneath  from  the  brisket 
along  the  belly  towards  the  twist.  The  hair  fine  and  abundant,  soft 
and  glossy;  the  skin  mellow  and  soft  to  the  touch;  the  flesh  is  accumu- 
lated on  the  valuable  parts,  the  fat  in  due  proportion  to  the  lean,  and 
the  flesh  of  the  slaughered  animal  is  fine  in  quality,  well  marbled,  and 
the  meat  most  juicy  and  tender.  In  the  bull  the  head  is  broader  and 
thicker,  and  the  neck  is  arched  and  coarser.  In  the  cow  the  belly  is 
more  pendulous ;  the  thighs  slighter,  and  the  loins  sometimes  hollow. 

The  appearance  of  the  Shorthorn  is  exceedingly  attractive  and  sym- 
metrical ;  its  skin  is  of  the  richest  hue,  from  the  blood  red  to  the  pure 
white  or  cream  or  the  beautiful  delicate  roan.  Ito  small  clean  limbs 
and  handsome  apperance  have  stamped  it  as  the  moat  magnificent  breed 
of  cattle  we  possess. 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  99 

them,  and  the  new  breed  so  produced  received  the  name  of  the  Short- 
horn. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  follow  the  history  of  the  breed  further.  As  it 
became  known  it  came  into  popularity  and  quickly  spread  and  multi- 
plied. About  the  year  1754  the  brothers  Collings,  of  Darlington,  entered 
upon  a  new  departure  in  the  history  of  this  new  breed,  applying  Bake- 
well's  principle  of  selection  in  the  breeding  of  the  Shorthorn  ;  a  step 
which  produced  the  happiest  consequences  and  the  most  important  re- 
sults, improving  the  frame  and  proportion  ;  of  the  cattle,  and  largely 
developing  and  increasing  their  milk  and  fattening  properties.  For 
many  years  they  followed  this  course,  and  when  the  herd  was  dispersed 
in  1810  the  prices  realized  at  its  sale  were  altogether  unprecedented. 
Since  then  much  has  been  done  by  many  persons  to  improve  the  breed. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  particularize  those  who  have  done  such 
great  service,  but  we  may  mention  the  names  of  Bates  (whose  great 
success  must  be  largely  be-  attributed  to  his  purchases  at  Collings's 
sale),  and  of  Booth,  the  founders  of  two  great  families  of  Shorthorns 
whose  fame  is  without  compare. 

The  points  of  the  Shorthorn. — The  color  may  be  entirely  red  or  entirely 
white,  or  a  mixture,  either  color  predominating,  but  not  in  spots.  The 
fashionable  color  has  varied  at  different  times.  Once  a  creamy  white 
was  all  the  rage  5  so  was  all  the  red,  and  the  flecked  roan,  but  a  good 
Shorthorn  cannot  be  a  bad  color  so  long  as  it  is  not  spotted.  The  skin 
around  the  eye  and  the  bald  of  the  nose  should  be  of  a  rich  cream  color, 
the  head  rather  small  in  proportion  to  size,  and  tapering  in  shape,  with 
a  fine  muzzle ;  a  clean,  calm,  and  prominent  eye ;  horns  rising  near  the 
crown,  short,  smooth,  and  white,  but  moderately  sharp,  and  of  fine 
quality ;  the  head  should  be  well  set  on  a  deep  form  and  broad  neck. 
As  to  the  frame,  it  should  approach  as  exactly  as  possible  to  the  shape 
of  a  parallelogram,  from  whatever  direction  viewed;  the  back  per- 
fectly straight  and  level  from  the  neck,  just  below  the  horns,  to  the  top 
of  the  tail  j  the  shoulders  well  back  in  the  body,  and  the  brisket  pro- 
jecting in  short  rectangular  form.  The  top  of  the  shoulders  should  be 
perfectly  level  and  the  loins  wide  and  level  across  the  hock  bones ;  the 
hind  quarters  long  and  straight,  as  should  the  shoulders,  forming  perpen- 
dicular and  well-marked  lines ;  the  buttocks  to  the  hocks,  and  the  shoulders 
to  the  knees  full  and  well  developed,  but  below  the  bones  should  be 
fine  and  clean  and  clearly  formed ;  the  twist  full  and  wide ;  the  flank 
full  and  thick,  and  the  tail  moderately  fine,  and  not  too  much  covered 
with  hair.  The  ribs  should  be  inclined  to  the  shape  of  a  barrel,  but 
when  the  animal  is  seen  along  the  side,  it  should  appear  as  if  per- 
fectly straight  and  level  from  the  shoulder  to  the  buttock.  When 
seen  endwise,  it  should  be  equally  straight  and  level  from  the  top  of 
the  neck  to  the  root  of  the  tail,  and  also  underneath  from  the  brisket 
along  the  belly  towards  the  twist.  The  hair  fine  and  abundant,  soft 
and  glossy ;  the  skin  mellow  and  soft  to  the  touch ;  the  flesh  is  accumu- 
lated on  the  valuable  parts,  the  fat  in  due  proportion  to  the  lean,  and 
the  flesh  of  the  slaughered  animal  is  fine  in  quality,  well  marbled,  and 
the  meat  most  juicy  and  tender.  In  the  bull  the  head  is  broader  and 
thicker,  and  the  neck  is  arched  and  coarser.  In  the  cow  the  belly  is 
more  pendulous ;  the  thighs  slighter,  and  the  loins  sometimes  hollow. 

The  appearance  of  the  Shorthorn  is  exceedingly  attractive  and  sym- 
metrical 5  its  skin  is  of  the  richest  hue,  from  the  blood  red  to  the  pure 
white  or  cream  or  the  beautiful  delicate  roan.  Ita  small  clean  limbs 
and  handsome  apperanoe  have  stamped  it  as  the  lafM'c  magnificent  breed 
of  cattle  we  possess. 


100  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Valuable  properties  of  the  Shorthorn. — The  valuable  properties  of  the 
Shorthorn  as  a  meat  producing  animal  are  said  to  be  without  rival.  It 
produces  the  greatest  quantity  of  beef,  and  that  of  the  best  quality,  and 
scales  the  heaviest  of  any  of  our  herds.  It  also  comes  to  maturity  at  a 
very  early  age  and  shows  the  most  kindly  disposition  to  fattening.  As 
a  milk  producer,  the  Shorthorn  can  claim  to  be  in  the  front  rank, 
though  the  general  opinion  is  that  it  must  yield  the  palm  to  the  Jersey 
and  the  Ayrshire.  For  many  years  past,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  the 
breeding  of  Shorthorns  has  been  conducted  solely  with  a  view  to  the 
production  of  beef,  but  formerly  this  animal  was  the  deepest  and 
heaviest  of  any  of  the  milk-producing  breeds,  and  if  for  a  few  years  it  was 
again  bred  for  the  pail,  as  it  is  now  for  the  butcher,  its  superiority  as  a 
milker  might  be  regained.  As  a  cheese  producer  the  Shorthorn  is  ad- 
mittedly the  best.  The  Shorthorn  is  to  be  found  everywhere,  but  its 
home  is  in  its  native  place  in  Yorkshire,  and  in  the  eastern  counties  of 
England.  It  is  to  be  found  all  over  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland, 
all  over  America,  in  Australia  and  New  Zealand.  Of  all  the  different 
breeds  of  cattle  we  possess,  the  Shorthorn  has  the  greatest  power  of 
adaptation  to  varying  conditions  of  life,  to  changes  of  soil,  of  climate, 
and  of  pasturage.  It  thrives  nearly  as  well  in  the  cold,  dry  northeast  of 
Scotland  as  in  the  moist  and  genial  south  of  Ireland,  and  is  equally  at 
home  in  the  nobleman's  park  and  upon  the  prairies  of  Texas. 

Shorthorn  cross-breeds. — But  while  it  is  esteemed  of  great  value  on 
account  of  adaptability  to  all  climates  and  soils,  it  has  achieved  won- 
derful results  through  crossing  with  other  varieties.  Crossing  with  the 
Shorthorn  improves  nearly  all  other  breeds  by  imparting  the  properties 
that  give  value  to  cattle,  viz.,  size,  form,  quality,  rapidity  of  growth, 
early  maturity,  and  aptitude  to  fatten  at  an  early  age.  Most  es- 
pecially marked  is  the  improved  quality  and  consequently  greater 
value  of  the  cross  between  the  English  Shorthorn  and  the-  old  Irish 
cow.  The  marvelous  result  is  presented  in  an  increase  of  ten  imperial 
stones7  weight  of  flesh  in  the  animal,  in  greater  size,  and  in  the  quality 
of  fattening  at  least  a  year  earlier  than  other  stock.  The  enormous  im- 
provement that  has  been  effected  and  that  is  still  being  carried  on  in 
the  breeding  of  Irish  cattle  is  within  the  knowledge  of  every  farmer. 
This  improvement  has  added  'no  less  than  twenty-five  per  cent,  to  their 
value  at  a  year  old,  and  is  the  result  of  crossing  with  the  Shorthorn 
during  tlie  last  and  present  generations. 

The  Shorthorn  is  used  in  Scotland  for  crossing  with  the  Ayrshire, 
and  it  is  said  that  the  produce  are  better  milkers  than  their  mothers. 
It  also  crosses  with  the  Guernsey  with  great  milking  results.  It  is, 
however,  for  the  size,  the  early  maturity  of  growth,  and  the  aptitude 
to  fatten  early  and  quickly  that  the  Shorthorn  imparts  to  other  breeds 
of  cattle  that  is  chiefly  valuable.  Shorthorn  steers,  or  steers  of  some 
other  breed  with  a  very  large  admixture  of  Shorthorn  blood,  are  the 
favorite  cattle  for  winter  and  summer  feeding  in  the  northern  and  mid- 
land counties  of  England.  In  some  quarters  the  Shorthorn  may  not 
find  so  much  favor  as  it  once  did,  and  in  certain  districts  other  breeds 
may  be  more  successfully  reared  and  fed ;  but,  for  general  purposes, 
upon  moderately  good  land,  and  in  an  average  climate,  the  Shorthorn, 
as  a  race  of  cattle,  is  equal  to  any,  while  it  is  surpassed  by  none.  Dis- 
tributed throughout  almost  every  county  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland, 
pedigree  Shorthorns  are  now  to  be  met  with ;  there  are  probably  some  GOO 
breeders,  possessing  about  20,000  cows,  and  distributing  good  bulls 
amongst  the  breeding  herds.  But  breeders  of  first-class  Shorthorns, 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  101 

Bays  Mr.  Dim,  have  of  late  years  been  very  generally  looking  to  beef 
rather  than  to  milk. 

How  to  form  Shorthorn  dairy  herds. — Some  sensible  and  far-sighted 
breeders  have  seriously  demurred  to  the  neglect  of  the  milking  proper- 
ties of  the  Shorthorns.  Mr.  Bates  was  opposed  to  overfeeding,  kept  his 
stock  in  a  very  healthy  natural  state,  and  some  of  his  best  cows  were 
deep  milkers.  Mr.  Whittaker  for  nearly  forty  years  maintained  the 
dairy  superiority  of  his  Shorthorns,  which  not  only  reared  their  calves, 
but  supplied  the  people  of  his  extensive  factory  with  milk.  He  never 
used  bulls  excepting  from  cows  which  reached  a  high  standard  of  dairy 
excellence.  Although  his  famous  bull,  Fairfax,  was  the  most  shapely 
he  ever  brea,  he  was  hired  to  go  to  Warwickshire,  became  the  sire  of 
many  good  steers  and  of  a  Smithfield  gold  medallist,  but  Mr.  Whitaker 
would  not  use  him  at  home,  as  he  did  not  consider  his  dam  a  sufficient 
milker.  The  late  Lord  Ducie  was  equally  anxious  to  preserve  the  milk- 
ing qualifications  of  his  herd,  and  was  a  staunch  opponent  to  over- 
feeding. The  forty-nine  cattle  at  his  great  sale  in  1853  were  in  very 
ordinary  condition  and  many  were  exceedingly  good  milkers.  From 
these,  and  other  such  tribes,  where  reasonable  pains  have  been  system- 
atically taken  to  maintain  milk,  pedigree  Shorthorn  cows  can  be  ob- 
tained which  will  compare  with  any  dairy  stock.  From  such  herds 
young  bulls  can  be  selected  which  may  be  trusted  to  produce  vigorous, 
good,  thriving  animals,  with  early  maturity,  good  all  round,  and  which 
will  not  detract  from  the  dairy  profits  of  the  herd  with  which  they  are 
mated.  By  the  use  of  such  sires  good  thriving  young  stock  are  pro- 
duced, which  make  the  best  of  their  food  and  time,  which,  whilst  they 
milk  as  well  as  their  dams,  probably  acquire,  when  dry,  greater  capa- 
bility rapidly  to  lay  on  beef.  I  need  not  here  enlarge  on  the  enormous 
boon  it  is  to  the  dairyman  to  have  his  caws  maintain  their  condition 
while  milking,  readily  to  lay  on  beef  as  they  are  dried,  and  if  required 
shortly  to  go  to  the  butcher  at  about  tfee  price  they  were  valued  for 
calving.  This  combination  of  good  qualities — this  milking  liberally  for 
eight  or  nine  months,  and  making,  if  needful,  three  or  four  months  later, 
a  good  carcass  of  beef— is  pre-eminently  secured  more  rapidly  and  ef- 
fectually by  Shorthorns  than  by  any  other  breed. 

A  very  valuable  herd  of  pure-bred  dairy  Shorthorns  could  be  inex- 
pensively founded  in  a  few  years  by  attending  Shorthorn  sales,  se- 
lecting animals  merely  for  their  dairy  qualities  and  without  regard  to 
fashion  or  tribe,  and  mating  them  with  a  bull  carefully  chosen  from  a 
heavy  milking  cow  of  a  well-known  dairy  sort,  such,  for  example,  as  the 
Knightleys.  My  herd  contains  animals  that  have  milked  twenty-four 
quarts  per  day  each  without  any  special  forcing  and  milked  only  twice 
a  day.  With  more  stimulating  food  and  an  extra  milking  even  larger' 
results  might  be  obtained.  I  am  inclined  to  the  opinion  that  pure-bred 
Shorthorns  give  richer  milk  than  common-bred  cows  of  no  particular 
type,  but  no  doubt  the  proportion  of  cream  is  affected  by  the  kind  of 
food  and  quality  of  land.  Bean  meal  is  a  favorite  "licking"  lor  milk 
cows  with  the  Yorkshire  men ;  cotton-cake  stands  next  ;  grains,  distill- 
ers' wash,  and  other  like  articles,  whilst  increasing  the  flow,  diminish 
the  quality  of  the  milk.  Twenty  years7  experience  in  milk-selling  and 
Shorthorn  breeding  brings  me  to  the  conclusion  that  £500  invested  in 
pure-bred  Shorthorns,  selected  solely  as  dairy  animals,  and  kept  to  yield 
milk  for  sale,  weaning  and  rearing  the  calves,  and  selling  off  the  dams  as 
fat  when  no  longer  serviceable  in  the  dairy,  would  in  ten  years  leave  bet- 
ter profit  than  the  same  amount  laid  out  on  any  other  breed  for  similar 
purposes. 


102  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY  FARMING. 

In  selecting  young  bulls  for  dairy  herds  it  is  not  only  essential  that 
they  are  descended  from  dams  and  tribes  which  have  the  desired  milk- 
ing capabilities ;  they  ought,  also,  to  carry  in  their  own  persons  some 
recognized  characters  indicative  of  dairy  usefulness.  Size,  substance, 
and  masculine  character,  are  essential  for  health  and  vigor.  Close- 
made,  compact  sizes,  although  sometimes  captivating  on  account  of 
shapely,  even  form,  are  rarely  good  getters,  either  of  steers  or  dairy 
cows.  There  is  a  happy  medium  between  smart  heifer-like  or  steery- 
bulls,  and  rough,  coarse  leggy  brutes..  The  head  should  be  kindly ,free 
from  coarseness,  but  withal  of  a  masculine  character,  without  which  a 
bull  is  unlikely  to  leave  his  mark.  I  do  not  object  to  tolerable  growth 
of  horn,  which  shows  constitution.  The  neck  should  be  rather  long  to 
secure  carriage  and  length  of  carcass,  merging  in  those  curved  lines  of 
beauty  into  a  well- developed  prominent  bosom.  The  chest,  necessarily 
capacious  to  give  ample  room  for  heart  and  lungs,  should  approach  the 
oval  of  the  well-bred  horse,  rather  than  the  round  or  square  propor- 
tions of  the  cart-horse.  This  will  bring  the  dewlap  somewhat  near  the 
ground.  The  shoulder  blades  will  be  well  laid  back;  there  will  be  no 
roughness  or  overdue  prominence  of  the  shoulder  points.  In  a  young, 
growing  animal  in  moderate  condition  this  conformation  will  entail  a 
somewhat  light  appearance  of  the  fore  quarters  and  the  fore  chine  may 
not  be  so  abundantly  clothed  with  beef  as  the  butcher  would  desider- 
ate. The  back  and  loin  cannot  be  too  wide,  the  back  ribs  should  be 
well  sprung ;  the  narrow  weak-backed  bull  is  certain  to  have  the  worst 
of  all  faults,  a  delicate  constitution.  The  quarters  should  be  long,  well- 
clothed  with  lean  meat,  but  alike  in  bulls  and  cows  of  milking  proclivi- 
ties, they  will  not  be  so  thick  and  massive  as  in  animals  selected  more 
exclusively  for  beef  making.  The  body  will  be  invested  with  a  skin  of 
moderate  thickness,  soft  and  pliant,  not  papery,  and  covered  with  rather 
long  fine  hair.  The  soft  undergrowth  of  mossy  hair,  so  pleasant  to  handle, 
augurs  fattening  rather  than  milking  capabilities.  It  is  not  absolutely 
necessary  for  ordinary  dairy  herds  that  the  bull  should  have  a  long, 
fashionable,  or  even  perfectly  consistent  pedigree,  free  of  the  so-called 
alloy,  and  satisfying  the  taste  of  the  critical  purist.  But  a  good  sound 
pedigree  secures  uniform,  certain  results.  A  bull  whose  pedigree  is 
made  up  of  a  number  of  dissimilar  strains  is  unlikely  to  get  his  calves 
with  that  uniformity  of  good  type  which  is  so  desirable.  The  fashion 
of  the  present  day  is  to  use  young  bulls,  beginning  with  them  when 
they  are  about  15  months,  and  discarding  them  often  when  they  are  3 
years  old ;  frequently  they  are  slaughtered  before  their  stock  becomes 
appreciated.  In  olden  times  bulls  were  wont  to  be  used  charily  at  first, 
their  progeny  were  carefully  noticed,  and  a  successful  sire  was  used  so 
long  as  he  continued  serviceable. 

i  I  recently  visited  the  Berkely  herd  of  Lord  Fitzhardinge,  which  is 
somewhat  famous  from  the  fact  of  his  having  given  £4,500  for  the  cele- 
brated bull,  Duke  of  Connaught,  which  I  judged  to  weigh  as  I  saw  him 
well  on  for  2J  tons.  The  herd  is  bred  for  sale  and  beef,  but  in  the  dis- 
trict, a  famous  dairy  one,  were  numbers  of  grand  Dairy  Shorthorns. 
Here,  as  at  Lord  Ducie's,  near  at  hand,  the  Shorthorns  are  all  pedigree 
beasts,  and  extremely  hardy,  and  certainly  not  highly  fed.  To  prevent 
quarter  evil,  setons  are  let  in  below  the  brisket.  The  Vale  of  Berkely 
is  near  the  Severn,  and  exposed  to  southwest  gales,  which  are  here  very 
severe. 

Dairy  Shorthorns.— The  following  will  give  some  idea  of  the  value  of 
what  is  known  in  the  midland  counties  of  England  as  the  Dairy  Short- 
horn, for  its  milking  properties.  There  are  some  families  of  this  old 


THE   UNITED  a  KINGDOM. 


103 


race  which  are  famous  for  their  symmetry  and  meat-producing  quali- 
ties ;  others  are  equally  famous  for  their  milk,  and  in  some  cases,  where 
the  owner  of  a  herd  has  made  it  his  study  for  a  number  of  years  to 
breed  from  milkers  only  and  to  produce  as  large  a  yield  as  he  possibly 
can,  the  herd  has  become  marvelously  prominent  in  this  qualification, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  one  to  which  reference  is  made  below.  A  year  or 
two  ago  a  member  of  the  British  Farmers'  Association  offered  a  chal- 
lenge cup  for  the  best  dairy-farm  record,  and  although  records  have 
been  sent  in  by  farmers  and  land-owners  in  different  parts  of  the  coun- 
try, and  with  regard  to  different  breeds,  so  far  none  have  equaled  that 
which  was  sent  in  by  the  Earl  of  Warwick  during  the  past  year  (1883), 
although,  unfortunately,  from  a  technical  error  it  was  not  able  to  com- 
pete for  the  prize. 

Wonderful  Shorthorn  dairy  record.— The  steward,  Mr.  Tough,  com- 
mences his  record  with  a  statement  as  to  the  analytical  value  of  his 
milk.  On  June  2  it  was  tested  by  Mr.  Bostock  Hill,  the  county  analyst, 
and  was  as  follows:  solids,  9.09;  fat,  4.37;  total,  13.46.  It  was  again 
tested  June  29,  showing  an  increase  of  .21  per  cent.,  while  the  fats  re- 
mained in  statu  quo:  solids,  9.31;  fat,  4.36;  total,  13.67.  On  August  4 
the  solids  showed  a  considerable  falling  off,  while  the  fats  were  propor- 
tionately increased  :  solids,  9.12;  fat,  5.21;  total,  14.33. 

The  Society  of  Analysts  have  adopted  9  per  cent,  as  the  limit  for 
solids  not  fat,  while  Professor  Wanklyn  suggested  9.5,  the  limit  for 
total  solids  being  11.5. 

The  record  refers  to  the  Shorthorn  cows,  four  of  which  were  four 
years  old,  four  five  years  old,  and  two  six  years : 


Number  — 

Weight  on  May  1. 

Weight-August  27,  after 
summer  feeding. 

Net  gain  between  May 
1  and  August  27. 

Product  in  milk  for  one 
week  on  May  1. 

Product  in  milk  for  one 
week  on  August  27. 

•8 

n  • 

M 

3| 

s| 

S* 

0   0 
k«N 

<\ 

Product  for  the  seven- 
teen weeks. 

Average  daily  product 
for  the  ae  venteen  week  s.t 

Percentage  of  cream  per 
cow  on  August  274 

Milk  set  for  butter. 

M 
1 

CM 
O 

>5 
1 

£> 

*Gn 

O 
Cj 

1 

H 

4 

| 

rO 

.2= 

**% 

u-S 

Lb». 
39| 
44- 
55; 
5£ 

40! 

51: 
44; 
39; 
42 
40i 

1  

Stone. 
73 
88 
84 
88 
80 
80 
86 
80 
78 
90 

Stone. 
92 
94 
94 
92 
90 
80 
96 
92 
94 
100 

Stone. 
14 
6 
10 
4 
1C 

""io" 

12 

10 

10 

Qts. 
1574 
154 
173 
126 
143^ 
146£ 
133£ 
130 
136 
138 

Qts. 
112 
118 
143 
*136 
110 
*150 
110 
104 
120 
114 

^ 
22 
24J 
18 
204 
21 
19 

3 

19J 

Qts. 
2,312 
2,  328 
2,838 
2,426* 
2,137 
2,  737 
2,  227* 
2,048* 
2,  262J 
2,2114 

Qts. 

Bt 

1! 

18 
23 
19 
17 
19 
184 

«A, 

10 
10 
14$ 
12 
11 
13 
12 
10 
10 

Qts. 

536 
508 
649 
571 
470 
640 
509 
469 
524 
494 

Pts. 

784 
79$ 
93 
99J 
75 
88J 
83 
764 
77 
74* 

2 

3  

4 

5 

6  

7 

8  

9 

10. 

*  Only  one  cow  maintained  her  position. 

t  The  highest  yield  was  of  a  five-year  old  cow,  calved  April  2,  which  gave  in  twelve  weeks  173, 157, 
1774, 198, 1854, 184, 183, 170, 178, 177, 162, 158,  or  25  quarts  a  day  for  84  daya. 

t  The  average  is  below  114  for  the  lot,  which  is  a  distinct  refutation  of  the  value  of  the  Shorthorn  as 
a  butter  cow. 

§  An  average  of  768,  a  decidedly  disappointing  quantity. 

||  A  total  ot  453J  pounds  from  13,761  pounds  of  milk,  or  about  1,030  gallons  of  cream  and  showing  an 
average  of  butter  to  milk  of  about  3.29,  and  cream  43.98.  The  quantities  of  skim  milk  are  also  shown, 
and  bear  a  fair  proportion  to  the  quantities  of  new  milk  used. 

It  appears  that  the  milk  was  in  part  sold  and  partly  set  for  cream  and 
churned.  The  quantity  sold  was  so  large  that  the  cows  yielded,  per 
cow,  from  this  source  alone  for  the  seventeen  weeks  of  the  trial  from 
£13  to  £18  5s.,  No.  3,  the  big  milker,  claiming  the  latter  high  figure, 
which  is  marvelous  even  without  the  sum  to  her  credit  for  butter  ann 


104  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

skim  milk;  and  if  it  were  possible  to  collect  dairies  of  such  cows, 
either  one  of  two  things  would  happen— the  compilation  of  fortunes 
the  general  reduction  of  foreign  dairy  imports — perhaps,  both.  As- 
suming from  the  yield  shown  by  Xo.  3  and  the  return  she  made  that 
the  milk  produced  Sd.  a  gallon,  this  would  be  a  decidedly  good  summer 
price. 

A  new  feature  in  this  record  is  the  manure,  which  appears  to  have 
been  well  looked  after,  and  very  properly  so,  especially  since,  as  is  seen 
below,  the  cows  had  a  considerable  quantity  of  cake.  The  feeding  was — 


Food. 

Pounds. 

Value. 

100 

£.  *.  d. 
16    4 

Cotton  cake  

250 

13    2 

Palm-nut  cake  ........... 

250 

14    0 

G  rass  

19  180 

4  10    8 

Hay  

39 

1    7 

Straw  

748 

19  10 

Labor  is  charged  2Ss.  3d.  per  cow,  and  haulage  9s.  lid,  making  a 
total  of  £10  2s.  9$.  per  cow ;  or,  when  considering  the  valuation  of  each 
animal — for  they  were  valued  both  at  the  beginning  and  end  of  the 
trial—an  average  of  £10  14s.  Id.,  the  real  figures  running  from  £9  4  Jd. 
in  one  case  to  £14  los.  2d.  in  another. 

Since  writing  the  above  we  have  felt  it  necessary  to  again  examine 
Mr.  Tough's  record,  the  yield  of  milk  being  so  surprising.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  Lord  Braybrooke's  cows  gave  an  average  of  about 
2,100  quarts  for  the  year,  and  yet,  as  shown  above,  Lord  Warwick's  in 
every  case  gave  more  than  this  for  the  seventeen  weeks.  Lord  Bray- 
brooke's, again,  averaged  5  quarts  to  10  quarts  a  day  for  the  period  in 
milk  (not  the  year),  while  Lord  Warwick's  gave,  as  shown  above,  from 
17  to  23}  quarts  for  the  seventeen  weeks.  With  all  respect,  and  we 
are  bound  to  take  Mr.  Tough's  figures,  we  consider  his  record,  if  not  so 
elaborate  as  a.  matter  of  figures,  yet  one  infinitely  more  worthy  of  a 
challenge  cup  than  any  other,  for  his  herd  is  a  truly  marvelous  one,  and 
will  take  our  American  friends  all  their  time  to  rival. 

There  are  10  cows  averaging  19.77  quarts  per  day  for  seventeen  en- 
tire weeks,  one  actually  reaching  23.84  quarts.  This  cow  returned : 

For  milk  sold  (,2, 189  quarts) £18    4  10 

Butter  (58£  pounds) 393 

Skim-milk  (581  quarts) 2    8    5 

Manure 0  15    5 


Total  return  for  seventeen  weeks 24  17  11 

Let  us  see  what  has  been  done  in  the  milking  competitions  as  a  guide 
to  the  value  of  this  return.  At  the  1880  trials  the  highest  Jersey  or 
Guernsey  yield  was  38  pounds  5i  ounces  ;  the  highest  Shorthorn,  50 
pounds  5  ounces;  the  highest  Dutch  and  cross-bred,  43  pounds  12  ounces, 
and  we  think  we  are  right  in  believing  that  neither  at  the  188 1  nor  the 
1882  trials  were  the  highest  of  these  figures  exceeded.  At  all  events 
here  are  cows  winning  in  milking  trials  which  give  less  in  their  flush 
for  a  single  day  than  Lord  Warwick's  best  average  for  11 9  days.  Facts 
speak  for  themselves,  and  it  appears  to  us  that  Lord  Warwick's  can 
not  only  beat  any  herd  of  which  the  public  has  lately  been  informed,  but 
that  he  would  stand  the  greatest  posible  chance  of  carrying  off  the 
chief  milking  trials. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  105 

A  remarkable  herd  of  dairy  Shorthorns. — The  following  particulars 
refer  to  Mr.  Hutchinson's  herd,  well  known  as  a  famous  one  in  York- 
shire, and  it  will  be  the  more  valuable,  inasmuch  as  he  was  the  winner 
of  the  royal  prize  for  the  best  farm  in  1883.  The  farm  comprises  about 
250  acres,  of  which  over  100  are  grass.  The  soil  is  partly  on  gravel,  and 
the  rest  on  strong  clay  loam,  with  bowlder  stones.  This  latter  is  only 
moderate,  and  without  liberal  treatment  would  not  be  very  productive. 
The  present  tenant  on  succeeding  to  the  farm  inherited  a  small  herd  of 
unregistered  Shorthorns,  which,  with  one  or  two  purchases  and  the  use 
of  Warlaby  and  Killerby  bulls,  has  resulted  in  a  collection  of  cattle  that 
have  won  more  prizes  since  they  have  been  shown  than  any  other  herd 
of  similar  dimensions.  The  most  fortunate  investment  was  Gerty,  by 
Vainhope,  bought  for  42  guineas  when  in  calf  to  Knight  of  the  Shire. 
Gerty  had  8  heifer  calves,  twins  twice  running,  and  from  her  descended 
Gertrude,  Gratitude,  Grateful,  Gratification,  Gratulations,  Gratuitous, 
Gratia,  and  Glad  Tidings. 

Another  equally  remarkable  family  are  the  Lady  tribe,  which  we  be- 
lieve were  bred  by  Mr.  Ilutehinson's  father.  Of  this  sort  were  Lady 
Playful  and  Lady  Alicia,  winners  at  Taunton  and  Birmingham,  and 
Lady  Pamela,  the  champion  female  at  the  York  meeting  in  July,  1883, 
a  wonderfully  true-grown  and  heavy-fleshed  two-year-old,  which  was 
first  shown  as  a  yearling  at  Beading  in  1883  in  a  big  class.  At  the  last 
five  Eoyal  meetings  Mr.  Hutchiuson  has  secured  five  first  and  three 
second  prizes  as  well  as  three  champion  prizes.  This  is  a  record  which 
it  would  be  hard  to  beat.  Lady  Pamela  is  wonderfully  thick-fleshed  and 
true-grown,  with  great  ribs  and  thigbs,  both  upper  and  under  lines  per- 
fect. She  has  won  21  first  prizes  and  has  only  twice  been  beaten.  Lady 
Pamela  2d,  own  sister,  a  rich  roan  calf  with  great  length,  is  also  very 
promising  and  likely  to  make  a  prize-winner,  whilst  Lady  Gratia  de- 
serves high  commendation.  Glad  Tidings,  another  of  Gerty's  descend- 
ants, a  handsome  three-year-old,  was  put  second  at  York  to  Mr.  St.  John 
Acker's  Lady  Caren  9th,  both  being  very  good  ones. 

In  the  pastures  are  to  be  found  a  lot  of  lusty  cattle  of  generally  uni- 
form type,  the  best  being  a  fine  old  cow,  Lady  Playful  (the  winner  ot 
fifty  prizes) ;  a  long  level  white  cow,  Gratification ;  Lady  Gracious,  by 
British  Lion  out  of  Lady  Grace,  by  K.  0.  B.,  a  handsome  red  cow  with 
quality  and  substance;  and  a  fine  old  wreck,  Lady  Laura,  which  had 
won  for  her  owner  £800  in  prizes.  The  bull  in  service  was  a  two-year- 
old,  bred  by  Air.  Talbot  Crosbie,  out  of  Eiby  Marchioness,  which  was  quite 
a  useful  animal,  with  great  length  and  substance.  On  the  farm,  in  ad- 
dition to  many  other  animals,  were  29  cows,  13  heifers,  10  bull  calves, 
10  heifer  calves,  and  1  bull,  the  whole  showing  that  it  was  heavily 
stocked,  and  indicating  also  the  high  condition  and  large  produce  ob- 
tained from  the  land. 

Treatment  of  dairy  Shorthorns  on  a  model  farm. — Mr.  Turnbull,  of  Hull, 
is  another  winner  of  a  first  prize  at  the  Koyal,  and,  as  a  very  large  dairy 
farmer,  occupying  as  he  does  more  than  one  farm,  and  keeping  and 
breeding  Shorthorns,  we  give  the  following  particulars  respecting  his 
system.  In  18Sl-'82  no  less  than  120  acres  of  Mr.  Turubuli's  Twyer's 
Wood  Farm  had  been  drained  at  2  feet  deep,  the  landlord  finding 
3-inch  pipes,  and  the  tenant  leading  and  putting  in  the  same.  Deep 
draining  does  not  answer  on  the  Holderness  clay,  though  a  depth  of 
from  30  to  36  inches  might  have  been  preferred.  Over  90  acres  liave 
been  limed  with  5  tons  of  magnesian  lime  per  acre,  which  has  proved 
of  the  greatest  advantage  in  securing  healthy  roots  and  improving  the 
quality  and  yield  of  grain,  whereas  as  compost  with  road-scrapings  the 


106  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

effect  in  improving  the  herbage,  and  especially  in  developing  the  clover 
plants,  has  been  very  marked.  The  land  is  generally  a  strong  loam,  of 
a  fertile  character. 

The  stock  on  the  farm  comprised  40  cows  and  heifers,  principally  Short- 
horns, of  excellent  type  and  grand  milking  properties,  some  cross-bred 
Ayrshire  and  Shorthorns,  10  capital  two-year-old  steers,  and  a  very  use- 
ful two-year-old  bull,  selected  with  due  regard  to  the  milking  properties 
of  the  dam.  Although  the  grass  is  of  excellent  quality,  it  is  supple- 
mented with  cake.  Thus,  from  May  1  to  October  21,  the  cattle,  accord- 
to  age,  have  from  2£  pounds  to  7  pounds  of  cake  daily  (two-thirds  cotton 
and  one-third  linseed  cake). 

They  live  out  day  and  night,  except  at  milking  time  (4  a.m.  to  6  a.  m., 
and  from  2  p.  m.  to  3.30  p.  in.).  From  July  the  dairy  cattle  have  a  daily 
allowance  of  green  tares,  and  in  September  and  October  they  have  cab- 
bages in  addition  to  cake  and  grass.  The  heifers  in  calf  run  Otat  on 
grass  both  summer  and  winter,  but  are  housed  in  a  straw  yard  at  night 
in  winter,  when  they  are  supplied  with  from  14  pounds  to  21  pounds  of 
hay,  according  to  age  and  size.  Heifers  due  to  calve  in  the  spring  are 
allowed  about  2  J  pounds  of  linseed  cake  daily  for  two  months  before 
calving.  From  October  21  to  April  30  the  cows  are  allowed  from  21 
pounds  to  28  pounds  of  hay  (one- third  long  and  two-thirds  chaffed),  with 
pulped  roots,  the  quantity  of  the  latter  ranging,  according  to  the  size 
and  condition  of  the  animals,  from  36  pounds  to  84  pounds,  the  artifi- 
cial food  for  cows  in  full  milk  comprising  3  pounds  of  linseed  cake  and 
3J  pounds  to  7  pounds  of  crushed  oats.  Heifers  in  full  milk  are  fed 
with  about  21  pounds  of  hay  (two-thirds  as  chaff),  with  50  pounds  of 
pulped  roots,  and  5  pounds  of  linseed  and  cotton  cake,  in  equal  propor- 
tions, or  a  similar  weight  of  linseed  cake  and  crushed  oats.  Oat  straw 
when  well  got  is  substituted  for  a  portion  of  the  hay.  Mr.  Turnbull 
considers  that  10  pounds  of  oat  straw  are  equal  to  7  pounds  of  hay. 

The  grass  farm  of  140  acres  at  East  Park,  which  Mr.  Turnbull  holds, 
is  occupied  on  a  lease  for  five  years  from  April,  1880,  and  has  received 
very  liberal  treatment  for  go  short  a  term,  as  it  includes  boning  a  con- 
siderable part  of  the  pasture,  the  liberal  application  of  fold  yard  manure, 
both  to  grazing  and  mowing  lands — 71  acres  being  devoted  to  meadow 
on  which  was  an  excellent  crop  of  hay — and  the  erection  of  a  consider- 
able length  of  strong  posts  and  rails,  which  cost  about  Is.  Qd.  a  yard 
fixed.  The  buildings  comprise  the  larger  portion  of  the  hall-stables 
and  outhouses,  and  by  judicious  alterations  have  been  rendered  very 
convenient  for  breeding  and  rearing  stock,  which  is  the  main  business 
here. 

The  management  of  young  stock  is  admirable,  some  details  of  which 
we  will  give.  As  to  the  treatment  of  the  calf :  It  is  removed  at  birth ; 
new  milk  is  supplied  for  a  month,  during  which  period  it  is  kept  warm 
in  pen  5  next,  for  three  or  four  weeks,  boiled  skim-milk  is  given ;  and, 
to  prevent  the  milk  being  burnt,  the  copper  vessel  is  suspended  in  a 
copper  of  water;  then  one-third  boiled  linseed  and  two-thirds  oatmeal, 
commencing  with  1  pound  of  the  mixture  daily,  are  mixed  hot  with 
skimmed  milk.  All  this  time  the  calf  is  taught  to  cat  sweet  hay  and  a 
little  linseed  cak»,  and  with  each  change  of  food  the  calves  are  re- 
moved to  more  airy  quarters,  which  also  allow  of  more  exercise.  In 
the  spring  and  summer  of  the  first  year  the  calves  do  not  go  out ;  the 
winter  calves  are  run  on  grass,  and  have  a  capital  shed  to  shelter  in  at 
night.  The  great  secret  of  success  is  the  judicious  change  of  food  and 
quarters,  according  to  the  age  and  strength  of  the  animal,  by  which 
steady  progress  is  insured,  the  cake  being  continued.  The  heifers  run 


THE -UNITED    KINGDOM.  107 

out  in  summer  and  winter,  coming  into  a  well- sheltered  yard  at  night 
in  winter.  They  calve  down  at  two  years  of  age,  and  remain  at  the 
farm  till  they  reach  their  prime,  i.  c.,  coming  down  with  third  calf, 
when  they  are  sent  to  the  before- mentioned  farm.  The  stock  in  August, 
1883,  consisted  of  31  cows  and  heifers,  in  milk  or  about  to  calve ;  18 
yearling  heifers,  fifteen  to  twenty-one  months  old,  for  calving  the  fol- 
lowing spring ;  19  winter  calves,  mixed,  eight  to  ten  months  old  5  10 
Shorthorn  calves,  three  to  six  months  old;  13  Shorthorn  calves,  under 
three  months ;  and  1  yearling  bull. 

The  winter's  average  yield  of  milk  was,  at  the  first-mentioned  farm, 
where  the  animals  in  most  profit  are  kept,  about  9  quarts,  and  at  the 
latter  about  7  quarts,  giving  an  average  of  8  quarts.  In  summer  the 
result  was  higher,  viz;  11  quarts  and  10  quarts  respectively,  giving  an 
average  of  10 \  quarts.  Assuming  that  the  average  is  9  quarts  a  day 
for  nine  months  in  the  year,  we  have,  at  10  pence  a  gallon,  a  gross  re- 
turn per  cow  of  over  £25,  which  for  the  liberal  mode  of  feeding  pays 
well.  East  Park  is  well  sheltered  by  plantations,  clumps  of  trees,  and 
fine  spreading  timber. 

Letting  out  cotes  to  laborers.— One  other  branch  of  Mr.  Turnbull's  en- 
terprise must  be  noted,  which  has  been  pursued  since  1876,  and  this  is 
the  letting  out  of  cows  to  laborers.  The  experiment  was  commenced 
with  Kerry  cows,  of  whose  valuable  dairy  properties  Mr.  Turnbull  had 
satisfied  himself  during  a  visit  to  Killarney.  These  were  succeeded  by 
Ayrshires.  The  rate  of  hire  is  regulated  by  the  cost  of  the  cow,  one- 
fourth  of  the  cost  being  the  average  rate  obtained.  The  cows  are  sup- 
plied when  near  calving.  The  contract  is  for  a  year,  and  the  money  is 
paid  in  advance,  a  plan  which  insures  due  care  of  the  cow,  as,  although 
the  loss  of  the  animal  is  borne  by  the  owner,  the  loss  of  produce  falls  on 
the  hirer.  As  an  evidence  of  the  care  that  is  taken  of  the  animals,  Mr. 
Turnbull  states  that,  having  let  out  150  cows  in  the  seven  years  of  this 
business,  only  one  cow  was  lost  in  calving,  and  the  first  animal  let  is 
still  in  service.  The  opportunity  of  getting  the  calf  and  the  produce  on 
such  terms  has  been  largely  appreciated.  Mr.  Turubull  estimates  the 
annual  cost  of  keeping  an  Ayrshire  cow  on  these  conditions  as  follows : 
Hire,  £5;  summer  keep,  £5 ;  winter  keep,  £8  10s ;  total  £18  10s.  A 
fairly  good  cow  is  considered  to  yield  2,200  quarts.  Taking  this  at  3d. 
per  quart,  and  the  calf  at  20s.,  though  the  present  value  if  by  a  Short- 
horn bull  would  be  more  than  double  that  sum,  the  value  of  produce  is 
£28  10s.,  leaving  a  profit  of  £10,  besides  the  great  advantage  of  skim- 
milk  for  the  children.  After  having  been  continued  for  three  years  the 
experiment  was  found  to  give  a  return  of  5  per  cent,  interest  on  the 
capital  invested,  after  paying  all  expenses  of  agency,  and  allowing  for 
depreciation,  fall  of  price,  &c.  The  hiring  commences  with  heifers 
about  calving  time,  these  being  let  at  from  10s.  to  20s.  under  the  ordi- 
nary price,  and  frequently  retained  by  the  same  hirer  for  some  years. 

(4)  THE  DEVON  CATTLE. 

The  Devon  cattle,  as  we  find  them  now,  are  very  different  no  doubt 
to  what  they  were  many  years  ago,  but  there  is  very  little  question  that, 
even  in  their  latter-day  aspect,  they  exhibit  many  of  the  particular  feat- 
ures, and,  to  a  very  large  extent,  much  of  the  form  which  characterized 
the  members  of  the  aboriginal  breed  from  which  they  sprung.  They 
have  been  called  into  existence  to  fulfill  a  particular  and  in  some  re- 
spects peculiar  purpose,  and,  as  far  as  it  is  given  to  us  to  judge,  they 
are  not  to  be  found  wanting.  The  localities  in  which  the  breed  is  most 


108  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

common,  the  climate  to  which  it  is  exposed,  and  the  requirements  of  the 
men  who  profit  by  it  always  combine  toward  a  certain  end,  and  in  the 
Devon  cattle  these  influences  have  worked  together  with  a  most  satis- 
factory result. 

Points  of  Devons. — Devon  cattle  possess  a  distinctive  type,  but  several 
varieties  are  placed  under  the  title,  and  there  is  probably  no  breed  in 
which  individuals  of  almost  precisely  similar  general  aspect  will,  when 
scrutinized  and  analyzed  carefully  in  their  several  features,  exhibit  more 
marked  variations.  In  size  they  are  medium,  although  it  is  much  the 
custom  to  speak  of  "  the  little  Devons."  True,  they  do  not  possess  the 
bulkiness  of  the  Shorthorn  or  the  Hereford  j  but,  for  all  that,  they  are 
far  from  being  a  diminutive  breed  like  the  Ayrshires,  the  Kerries,  or 
the  Channel  isles  cattle.  The  general  aspect  of  the  Devons  is  graceful, 
and  their  appearance  seems  to  betoken  a  gentleness  of  mien  which  their 
looks  do  not  belie.  The  head  is  small  but  the  forehead  comparatively 
broad,  tapering  off  to  a  neat,  clean-cut  muzzle.  The  ears  are  thin  and 
soft  in  texture,  the  eyes  bright,  and  do  not  exemplify  that  dreamy  look 
which  many  breeds  have.  They  should  be  encircled  by  a  ring  of  light 
coloring,  almost  approaching  an  orange  hue. ,  The  nose  should  be  white. 
The  horns  are  of  medium  length,  graceful,  and  spread  in  an  outward  and 
upward  direction,  tapering  easily  olf.  In  the  male  this  feature  is  scarcely 
exemplified  to  the  extent  that  it  is  in  the  female. 

The  outline  of  the  Devon  should  not  exhibit  any  very  marked  diver- 
gence from  the  shape  of  the  proverbial  parallelogram  which  should  be 
realized  in  fat  beasts.  The  neck  is  full  but  lengthy,  and  should  show  a 
good  wedge-like  form  when  regarded  end  on. '  The  chest  is  deep  and 
prominent ;  wide,  fat  loins,  and  a  well-filled  rump,  where  plenty  of  beef 
may  be  piled  up,  constitute  one  of  its  best  points  as  a  butcher's  beast 
The  legs  are  fine,  but  well  set  on.  The  bone  of  the  Devon  is  small,  but 
the  frame  is,  notwithstanding,  comparatively  speaking,  large.  Eed  is 
the  color  of  the  Devon,  although  a  large  number  of  the  cattle  in  Devon- 
shire display  some  white  about  them.  The  skin  is  fine  and  mottled. 

Varieties  of  Devons. — Devon  cattle  may  be  grouped  under  three  vari- 
eties, the  North  Devons,  the  South  Hams,  and  the  Devon  proper,  as 
exemplified  in  the  accompanying  illustration.  The  North  Devons  are 
the  smaller  and  finer  variety.  Their  coat  is  softer  and  more  curly,  and 
their  general  appearance  more  nearly  warrants  them  being  termed  "the 
little  Devons"  than  does  either  of  the  other  two  more  distinctive  vari- 
eties. The  South  Hams  cattle — that  is  the  cattle  bred  upon  the  fine 
uplands  which  lie  between  Dorset  on  the  southeast,  the  sea  on  the  south, 
and  Cornwall  on  the  southwest  of  Dartmoor,  which  forms  the  center 
highland  of  the  county — are  fine  beasts,  coarser  in  appearance  and  of 
bigger  bulk  than  the  North  Devons.  The  Devons  proper  may  be  said 
to  combine  the  most  notable  features  of  these  two  varieties.  They  are 
found  mostly  in  the  district  around  Taunton,  and  in  Somersetshire  and 
in  Dorset,  and  are  well  represented,  as  a  rule,  at  the  Smithfield  Club's 
show,  where  they  are  apparently  the  embodiment  of  the  standard  of 
excellence  for  Devons.  Besides  these,  both  Exmoor  and  Dartmoor,  the 
latter  particularly,  can  show  a  rougher  type,  smaller  in  size,  and  rather 
coarser  in  bone  and  flesh  than  can  the  other  less  exposed  parts  of  the 
country. 

Special  characteristics. — The  merits  of  the  Devon  are  many.  They  arc 
as  profitable  a  meat-producing  breed  as  any  we  have.  Given  so  much 
food,  the  percentage  of  beef  returned  is  as  large  as  can  be  shown  by  any 
other  breed.  The  beef  is  of  prime  quality,  the  offal  proportionate,  and 
the  bone  small.  As  fatteners  they  are  not  to  be  surpassed  in  their  own 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  109 

country,  and  will  go  from  store  to  fat  beasts  quickly  on  good  pasture 
and  a  little  artificial  food.  They  require  no  severely  expensive  nor  exten- 
sive course  of  fattening.  As  dairy  cows  they  are  more  noted  for  the  qual- 
ity than  the  quantity  of  their  produce,  but  it  must  not  be  supposed  that 
the  latter  is  small.  As  a  rule,  seeing  the  cream  that  is  got  from  their  milk, 
the  quantity  is  comparatively  large.  One  hears  of  great  Jersey  and 
Ayrshire  records,  but  there  is  little  doubt  that  were  Devon  records  as 
persistently  and  carefully  put  before  tiie  public,  they  would  take  a  high 
place  in  the  ranks  of  our  dairy  breeds. 

The  illustration  represents  Mr.  Farthing's  cow  Pretty  Face,  and  gives 
a  very  good  idea  of  the  Devon  in  its  proper  form.  The  head  is  not  quite 
what  it  should  be.  The  horns  project  in  too  straightforward  a  direc- 
tion and  appear  too  parallel.  But  the  neck  is  well  shown,  and  the  fine- 
ness of  the  frame,  with,  at  the. same  time,  medium,  heavy  build  of  but- 
tock, is  also  evident. 

Mr.  Perry,  of  Alder,  Lewdown,  North  Devon,  says : 

I  will  not  confine  my  remarks  to  strict  data,  but  rest  them  rather  on  general  nat- 
ural laws  and  principles  and  broad  results,  because  from  tlio  various  and  varying 
conditions  which  must  bo  brought  into  play  to  produce  the  developed  animal  arising 
from  different  treatments  and  situations,  strict  or  narrow  data  are  often  misleading 
rather  than  otherwise.  In  the  first  place,  I  hold  that  small  as  well  as  large  sized  ani- 
mals are  needed  to  turn  our  various  cattle  foods  to  the  best  account  for  tho  produc- 
tion of  the  best  supply  of  animal  food  for  the  people.  All  producers  cannot  raise  the 
foods  required  for  tho  proper  development  of  large-sized  animals,  nor  are  large-sized 
joints  of  meat  suitable  to  all  households.  Again,  small  animals  can  be  brought  to 
perfection  on  pastures  which  will  only  keep  large  animals  in  store  condition,  and 
when  fodder  is  scarce  the  small  animals  will  pick  their  food  in  sufficient  quantities, 
while  the  large  animals  will  starve,  and,  if  wanted  for  the  market,  tho  former  can,  in 
a  few  weeks,  be  fattened  on  concentrated  foods  before  one's  eyes,  whereas  a  largo 
animal  must  have  its  time.  There  is  this,  however,  to  bo  said  of  large-class  animals: 
if  their  owners  can  keep  them  fattening  from  birth,  they  must,  to  have  heavy  weights 
at  an  early  age,  have  growth. 

My  conclusion  is  that  an  animal  which  is  right  in  form,  quality,  and  constitution 
is  a  first-class  one,  whether  it  bo  of  a  largo  or  small  size,  and  it  therefore  remains  for 
those  who  have  them  to  place  them  in  suitable  situations  for  foods  and  markets.  I 
have  often  found  rny  small-framed  animals  make  me  the  most  money,  and  my  motto 
is  to  have  an  animal  that  will  swell  rat&or  than  grow  into  value.  From  fifty  to  sixty 
years  ago  Shorthorn  cattle  were  introduced  into  Cornwall  by  a  Mr.  Peter,  and  they 
spread  over  a  large  part  of  the  country,  fixing  themselves  more  particularly  in  tho 
best  districts.  They  also  found,  their  way  into  Devonshire  and  Somersetshire,  whore 
they  have  had  rather  an  extensive  hold,  but  of  laic,  however,  the  Devons  have  been 
hedging  them  rather  closely  into  the  most  fertile  spots  of  the  country,  and  many  who 
were  zealous  advocates  for  them  have  cither  partially  or  wholly  given  them  up. 
Herefords  also  found  their  way  into  Cornwall  about  tho  same  time  and  were  ex- 
tensively kept  in  the  eastern  part  of  that  county  by  a  few  other  breeders  farther  west, 
but  they  have  nearly  disappeared  from  tho  east  and  are  in  few  hands  in  the  west  of 
tho  county.  They  are  no  favorites  with  tho  butcher,  having  too  much  rank  spine  or 
fat,  and  killing  hollow  and  deceptive  in  weights.  The  North  Devons  are  now  enter- 
ing into  the  strongholds  of  the  above  breeds,  and  becoming  tho  most  general  breed 
in  the  west  of  England.  Their  flesh  is  more  raarbly  and  mixed  than  tho  before-men- 
tioned breeds,  and  their  meat,  as  a  rule,  is  of  finer  texture,  more  firm,  and  of  superior 
flavor.  They  may  be  divided  into  two  classes,  the  North  Devon  and  the  Somerset 
Devon.  The  former  is  a  smaller  animal  than  tho  latter,  more  handsome,  and  more 
easily  fattened.  They  are  particularly  adapted  for  hilly  districts,  where  they  will 
frisk  about  with  pleasure,  and  do  well  on  short  pastures,  and,  with  a  little  indulgence 
for  a  few  weeks,  will  bo  fit  for  the  butcher,  nothing  in  the  way  of  beef  selling  at  a 
higher  price  per  pound.  Animals  of  this  breed  that  are  fit  for  slaughtering  at  5  cwt. 
may  be  made  8  cwt.  or  9  cwt.  with  extra  feeding. 

The  Somerset  Devon  is  a  larger  animal  than  the  genuine  North  Devon,  and  from 
having  been  crossed  with  the  latter  sometimes  grand  animals  aro  produced.  As  a  spec- 
imen ;  for  example,  I  may  name  Kidner's  Islington  champion  prize  ox.  It  is  certainly 
important  that  the  North  Devon  should  be  preserved,  for  then  crosses  may  bo  takeu 
as  people  wish,  but  if  the  pure  race  is  lost  it  cannot  be  recalled  and  a  cross-bred  ani- 
mal cannot  be  depended  on  to  stamp  its  character  on  its  offspring.  The  well-bred 
Devon  is  not,  as  a  rule,  a  great  milker,  but  the  quality  of  the  milk  is  rich  and  a  poood 
of  butter  per  day  may  be  considered  a  good  average.  Well-bred  animals  aro  often. 


HO  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

kept  in  the  dairy,  though  they  fail  as  milkers,  simply  on  account  of  their  value  as 
"breeders,  but  this  is  not  the  case  with  mongrels,  for  if  they  fail  as  milkers  they  are  at 
once  fattened.  On  this  account  mongrels  are  often  stated  to  be  better  for  the  dairy 
than  they  really  arc.  The  Devon  breed  occupies,  with  but  little  exception,  the  whole 
of  the  district  north  of  the  forest  of  Dartmoor  to  the  Bristol  Channel,  including  the 
forest  of  Exmoor,  and  from  West  Somersetshire  through  Devonshire  and  Cornwall  it 
holds  the  principal  sway.  I  consider  the  fact  of  the  Devon  cattle  again  taking  pos- 
session of  the  strongholds  of  the  other  breeds  to  be  a  broader  and  much  more  trust- 
worthy fact  as  to  merit  than  any  test  made  (as  I  have  before  hinted)  on  a  small  scale. 
The  Devons  \vero  lirst  bred  on  the  Government  prison  farm  at  Dartmoor,  then  the 
Ayrshires,  then  the  Polled  Scots,  and  now  the  Devona  have  again  taken  up  the  posi- 
tion they  at  first  held. 

Mr.  Bichard  Bickle,  of  Bradstone,  says: 

My  uncle  has  been  a  breeder  of  Devons  for  upwards  of  forty  years  and  I  still  retain 
the  same  herd.  I  have  always  found  them  more  profitable  than  any  other  breed,  both 
for  milk  and  aptitude  to  fatten.  I  can  keep  three  Devons  to  two  Shorthorns,  and  I 
find  they  will  stand  the  winter  and  our  wet  climate  far  better  than  any  cross  or  other 
pure-bred  animals,  and  that  without  any  housing  or  extra  care.  I  have  125  bullocks, 
chiefly  Devons,  but  I  find  the  best  bred  ones  are  preferable  to  be  kept,  as  they  are  always 
fit  for  anyone  to  look  at.  During  the  summer  months  I  graze  upwards  of  100  besides 
my  regular  stock,  and  consequently  I  sometimes  get  a  Shorthorn,  Hereford,  or  cross- 
bred animal,  but  I  invariably  find  it  does  me  no  good. 

I  have  never  tested  the  milking  properties  of  the  Devons,  but  they  are  not  heavy 
milters  as  a  rule,  although  the  cream  is  of  the  richest  quality  and  will  make  more  but- 
ter than  that  from  almost  any  other  breed.  We  never  make  cheese  in  our  county,  as  it  is 
not  one  for  cheese  making.  The  average  weight  of  my  cows  with  ordinary  feeding 
would  be  about  7  cwt.  of  marketable  beef,  steers  being  about  the  same  at  3  years  of 
age.  I  have  had  some  of  the  latter  which  weighed  as  much  as  13  cwt.  at  4  years  old. 
Bulls  in  proportion  weigh  just  the  same. 

The  chief  part  of  my  farm  is  a  light  soil,  with  grey  freestone,  and  the  temperature 
is  very  changeable  both  in  summer  and  winter.  We  have  plenty  of  rain.  As  the  dis- 
trict I  live  in  is  a  grazing  district  the  grasses  used  are  of  an  ordinary  character  just 
for  three  years  ley.  The  Devons  in  my  immediate  neighborhood  are  not  used  for  draught 
purposes,  but  in  the  neighboring  county  of  Cornwall  I  have  heard  of  several  being  so 
used.  My  uncle  had  oxen  in  constant  work  many  years  ago,  and  they  were  consid- 
ered better  workers  than  any  other  breed.  My  young  stock  as  a  rule  are  housed  about 
the  beginning  of  November,  but  it  depends  partly  on  the  mildness  of  the  season.  Store 
ones  have  anVpen  shed  all  the  winter. 

Mr.  Surridge,  another  breeder  of  the  Devons,  observes : 

In  speaking  of  the  Devons  it  must  be  remembered  that  there  are  the  Somerset  De- 
von and  North  Devon  breed.  I  have  been  breeding  principally  Somerset  Devons. 
I  have  never  kept  an  account  of  the  average  yield  of  milk,  but  some  of  the  Devon  cows 
give  from  16  to  18  quarts  per  day  and  make  from  1  pound  to  1|  pounds  of  butter  daily, 
and  others  give  not  more  than  half  that  quantity.  The  live  weight  of  a  Somerset 
Devon  at  four  years  of  age  reaches  from  18  cwt.  to  22  cwt.,  and  my  own  bred  bull  Robin 
at  4  years  old  weighed  1  ton  56  pounds,  and  the 'dead  weight  was  considered  80  score. 
The  cows  weigh  from  12  cwt.  to  17  cwt.,  live  weight ;  oxen,  from  15  cwt.  to  20  cwt.; 
steers  under  two  years  old,  8  cwt.  to  10  cwt. ;  steer  under  three  years  old,  from  12  to  15 
cwt.,  and  steer  under  four  years,  from  13  to  17  cwt. 

The  grasses  cultivated  are  Dutch,  Alsyke,  Trefoil,  Italian,  rye  and  clover.  I  my- 
self cut  some  for  hay ;  others  cut  some  green  for  feeding  in  summer.  If  the  animals 
are  intended  for  exhibiting  the  system  of  housing  pursued  is  to  keep  them  in  in  sum- 
mer a:id  winter,  giving  them  every  day  moderate  exercise,  and  feeding  them  on  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  meal-cake  root  and  green  food.  I  commence  handling  and  leading  when 
my  beasts  are  about  three  months  old,  but  sometimes  before.  The  dead  weight  of  one 
of  my  animals  (Norah  3d)  was  144  stone  5  pounds,  or  57  score  17  pounds,  and  her  live 
weight  14  cwt.  1  quarter.  The  temperature  on  my  farm  is  about  60°  to  65°  in  sum- 
mer and  45°  to  50°  in  winter,  and  the  soil  in  my  neighborhood  is  chiefly  ray  and  sand, 
some  of  which  is  very  good  and  some  very  inferior. 

(5)  THE  HEREFORD  CATTLE. 

Characteristics. — The  chief  points  to  be  looked  for  in  a  good  Hereford 
are,  first,  that  the  color  should  be  a  distinct  red,  not  too  dark  or  too 
light,  white  face,  inane,  breast,  and  belly,  white  end  to  tail,  and  white 
legs  as  far  as  the  knee  and  hock,  sometimes  running  up  the  flank. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  113 

The  bull  should  have  a  good  masculine  head,  not  too  long,  broad  be- 
tween the  eyes,  which  latter  should  be  large  and  prominent,  but  with  a 
mild  look  about  them,  denoting  docility  and  equability  of  temper ;  the 
horns  should  be  of  moderate  length,  springing  straight  from  the  head. 
The  cow's  head  should  be  much  the  same,  but  finer,  should  have  a  mane, 
and  her  horns  turn  upward  slightly ;  they  should  be  in  both  cases  of 
a  foxy  white,  although  occasionally  they  are  found  tipped  with  black. 
The  nose  should  be  a  pure  white  or  flesh- color.  The  bull  should  have 
a  good  rise  of  crest,  deep-sloping  shoulders,  well-developed  brisket, 
straight  back  and  belly  line,  wide  loin,  good  springing  ribs,  moderately 
broad  hips,  tail  well  set  on  and  falling  in  a  plumb  line  to  the  hocks ;  the 
hind  quarters  should  be  long  from  the  hip  back ;  the  thighs,  which  are 
a  very  important  point,  should  be  large  and  full,  showing  plenty  of  width 
across  when  you  stand  behind,  and  should  be  well  meated  to  the  hocks. 
The  whole  carcass  should  be  set  square  on  good  short  legs  standing  well 
apart,  and  be  covered  with  firm  flesh  of  good  quality,  and  a  mellow  hide 
of  soft  but  not  too  fine  hair,  giving  the  impression,  when  you  touch  it, 
that  it  will  stretch  to  any  extent ;  but  the  test  of  "  touch  "  is  extremely 
difficult  to  explain  in  words,  and  it  can  only  be  learned  by  practice. 

History  of  the  Hereford. — There  can  be  no  two  opinions  on  the  ques- 
tion of  what  Hereford  cattle  are ;  they  are  most  undoubtedly  a  distinct 
and  pure  breed  of  great  antiquity.  Their  early  history  is  like  that  of 
many  others,  rather  shrouded  in  mystery,  but  it  is  generally  allowed 
that  there  has  been  a  breed  of  cattle,  red  and  mostly  with  white  face 
and  markings,  for  at  least  two  hundred  years  in  the  county  of  Hereford 
and  the  neighboring  counties.  When  crossed  with  other  breeds  the 
potency  of  the  Hereford  blood  (pure  for  centuries)  is  distinctly  proved, 
as  it  is  an  exception  for  any  calves  to  come  any  other  color  than  the  red 
with  white  face.  This  has  come  true  from  Hereford  bulls  on  black 
Welch  cattle,  Ayrshire,  and  Shorthorns  ;  again,  if  a  Shorthorn  bull  is 
put  to  a  Hereford  cow  the  produce  usually  follows  the  dam  in  color, 
and  cases  have  been  seen  where  the  produce  of  tlie  Hereford  bull  with 
the  black  cattle  come  black,  but  still  they  have  nad  the  correct  Here- 
ford marking  as  regards  the  white  face  and  legs. 

Valuable  qualities  oftJie  Hereford's. — Their  milking  properties  have 
been  so  long  neglected  in  the  interest  of  beef,  that  they  are  usually  not 
deep  milkers,  but  give  very  rich  milk.  In  all  cases  a  cow  should  be 
milked  regularly  and  stripped  quite  clean.  £To  doubt  this  has  much  to 
dp  in  forming  good  milking  tribes  of  cattle,  by  encouraging  the  milk- 
giving  organs  as  far  as  possible.  Where  calves  are  allowed  to  suck  in 
the  open  field  this  cannot  be  attained,  and  is  one  great  cause  of  the 
Herefords  not  giving  so  much  milk  as  they  would  under  other  circum- 
stances. As  beef  makers  they  are  quite  at  the  top  of  the  market,  as 
market  quotations  record  best  Scot  and  Herefords  as  being  usually 
quoted  together.  The  calves  are  usually  allowed  to  run  with  their  dams 
during  the  summer,  and  this  gives  them  a  good  start,  but  it  is  too  often 
lost  sight  of  that  they  should  be  kept  growing  on  when  weaned,  instead 
of  stunted  during  the  winter  and  following  months. 

The  Hereford  fairs  have  long  been  noted  for  bringing  together  the 
best  collection  of  bullocks  in  England,  and  are  attended  by  dealers  and 
grazers  from  far  and  wide,  as  they  are  highly  valued  in  our  great  graz- 
ing districts. 

Breeders  of  Herefords  claim  for  their  favorites  that  they  are  among 
the  most  hardy  of  all  breeds  of  cattle,  can  be  fed  on  less  meat,  and  thrive 
on  coarse  rough  food,  and  thus  are  particularly  adapted  for  countries 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

where  it  is  impossible  to  take  special  care  of  the  cattle  through  bad  sea- 
sons and  winter  months. 

Herefords,  except  in  a  few  instances,  have  been  bred  entirely  for  beef. 
One  great  object  of  breeders  is  to  have  their  animals  as  wide  on  their 
chine  as  possible,  so  as  to  carry  good  full  crops  when  fat,  and  no  cow 
will  niilk  deeply  unless  it  is  made  like  a  wedge — the  lighter  neck  and 
forepart  the  better.  If  attention  were  paid  to  the  Hereford  as  it  has 
been  to  the  Shorthorn,  they  could  be  trained  to  milk  well  and  deeply, 
and  the  richness  of  the  milk  is  not  gainsaid  ;  but  whether  they  would 
excel  the  Shorthorns  or  become  equal  to  the  best  of  them  it  is  difficult 
to  say,  nor  do  I  think  it  worth  while  for  breeders  to  try ;  at  all  events 
so  thinks  another  Hereford  man.  They  stand  first  and  foremost  as  a 
beef-producing  race,  and  perhaps  it  is  as  well  they  should  for  the  pres- 
ent take  their  stand  on  that,  but  if  any  breeders  fancy  taking  up  the 
milk  line,  they  will  probably  in  a  great  measure  succeed. 

Herefords  for  crossing. — A  celebrated  breeder  of  Herefords  in  England 
recently  addressed  the  following  queries  to  a  gentleman  who  had  tried 
the  cross  of  a  Hereford  bull  on  Shorthorn  dairy  cows  for  several  years: 

1.  Of  calves  got  by  a  Shorthorn  bull  or  by  a  Hereford  bull,  which  fatten  the  quickest 
and  which  are  the  most  valuable  if  sold  fat  to  butcher  f  2.  Of  heifers  got  by  a  Short- 
horn or  Hereford  bull,  which  do  you  consider  the  best  for  milk,  having  regard  both 
to  quantity  and  quality,  and  in  quality  both  as  regards  cheese  and  butter?  3.  As 
to  the  produce  generally  got  by  a  Shorthorn  or  Hereford  bull,  do  you  find  any  differ- 
ence as  to  their  gain  of  flesh  or  ability  to  thrive  both  at  grass  and  in  yards  ;  and,  if 
so,  state  fully  your  views  thereon  ?  4.  Do  you  find  any  difference  of  size  in  the  prod- 
uce ;  and,  if  so,  which  are  the  largest  animals — the  Shorthorns  or  those  the  result  of 
the  cross  with  the  Hereford  bulls  ?  5.  Do  you  think  there  is  any  difference  as  to  hard- 
ness or  as  to  liability  to  disease  between  the  Shorthorns  and  the  animals  resulting 
from  the  cross  with  the  Hereford  bull;  and,  if  so,  to  which  do  you  give  the  prefer- 
ence ?  6..  Does  the  offspring  of  the  cross  with  a  Hereford  bull  generally  follow  the 
marking  of  the  sire  or  of  the  Shorthorn  dam  ? 

The  following  were  the  replies  received: 

1.  I  consider  those  got  by  a  Hereford  bull.  2.  Heifers  got  by  a  Hereford  bull  are, 
I  consider,  equal  to  the  pure-bred  Shorthorn  for  the  production  of  milk,  both  as  re- 
gards quantity  and  qualify.  3.  My  experience  tells  me  that  produce  got  by  a  Here- 
ford bull  out  of  a  Shorthorn  cow  feeds  quicker  both  on  grass  and  when  put  up  to  feed. 
4.  Produce  obtained  by  the  cross,  as  mentioned  in  No.  3  (viz,  by  a  Hereford  bull),  is 
the  larger  of  the  two.  5.  Undoubtedly  the  produce  obtained  by  using  the  Hereford 
bull  is  the  hardier  and  has  my  preference.  (5.  I  find  that  the  offspring  obtained  by 
the  cross  with  the  Hereford  bull  follows  the  sire  in  color  in  five  cases  out  of  seven. 

The  writer  adds  as  follows: 

Having  some  three  years  ago  bought  some  Hereford  cattle  from  you,  I  think  you 
might  like  to  know  that  they  have  done  remarkably  well,  though  I  find  it  takes  a 
long  time  to  make  a  name  as  a  Hereford  breeder.  At  the  same  time  that  I  boug.ht  1  be 
Heiefords  from  you  I  purchased  ten  Yorkshire  dairy  covrs— Shorthorns— from  Mr. 
Gothorp,  near  Bedale,  in  Yorkshire,  and  after  these  cows  had  calved  I  determined  to 
try  a  cross  of  the  two  breeds,  which  I  did  by  using  the  Hereford  bull  I  bought  from 
you  on  the  Shorthorn  cows.  The  result  was  beyond  ray  expectation.  I  roared  the 
calves  on  skim-milk,  &c. ;  they  had  a  little  cake  till  they  were  six  months  old,  when 
they  took  their  luck.  At  eighteen  months  old  I  gave  them  4  pounds  each  per  day 
when  grazing  (this  would  be  in  September).  On  the  12th  October  I  put  them  up  to 
feed,  giving  them  8  pounds  of  cotton-cake  and  linseed-cake  mixed,  and  6  pounds  of 
meal  with  pulp  each  per  day.  The  week  before  Christmas  I  sold  two  of  them,  aver- 
aging £21  10s.  each,  and  also  some  Shorthorn  bullocks  (which  I  had  also  bought  fiom 
Mr.  Gothorp).  These  latter  were  three  months  older,  and  only  realized  £19  15s.  per 
head,  though  similarly  fed.  In  the  second  week  of  January  I  sold  some  more  of  the 
cross- bred  bullocks  (they  were  then  twenty-three  months  old),  and  they  averaged 
£24  5s.  Qd.  per  head,  and  the  remaining  Shorthorn  bullocks  averaged  £22  17s.  per 
head,  being,  as  the  others,  three  mouths  older.  I  certainly  am  of  opinion  that  the 
bullock  obtained  by  this  cross  is  better  than  the  pure-bred  Shorthorn  for  the  quick 
production  of  beef.  I  have  also  some  heifers  of  this  cross  about  to  calve,  and  they 
carry  plenty  of  flesh,  and  promise  to  make  equally  a«  good  milkers  as  their  dams.  1 
consider  the  result  of  the  cross  satisfactory,  especially  on  this  poor,  cold  clay  eeil,  tho 
grass  of  which  (as  you  know)  will  not  feed  a  mouse. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  113 

As  to  their  milking  qualities,  says  a  tenant  farmer,  no  doubt  breeders 
have  neglected  them  almost  entirely,  as  it  is  the  usual  custom  to  rear 
the  calves  on  the  cows,  and  beef,  not  dairy  produce,  is,  as  a  rule,  the 
end  aimed  at.  This  is,  however,  true  in  a  great  degree  of  other  breeds 
when  the  best  tribes  are  kept  for  breeding  purposes,  and  it  is  a  question, 
whether  a  Hereford  does  not  give  as  much  milk,  and  perhaps  even  of  a 
richer  quality,  than  the  crack  tribes  of  other  breeds,  exceptin'g  thoss 
bred  especially  for  milking  purposes.  There  are  few  Hereford  dairies 
kept,  but  from  my  crwn  experience  I  believe,  by  selection,  that  a  grand 
milking  herd  could  soon  be  established.  No  one  will,  who  has  tried 
the  experiment,  agree  to  the  statement  that  the  Herefords  do  not  cross 
well  with  other  breeds.  The  Americans  have  found  it  out,  and  now  as- 
sert that  they  can  sell  their  Hereford  grade  steers  for  more  money  than 
those  of  other  crosses.  It  may  be  true  that  they  have  not  been  very  ex- 
tensively tried,  but  the  experiments  that  have  been  tried  will  soon  u  get 
wind";  in  fact  they  .have  already,  and  the  demand  is  entirely  increasing 
in  consequence. 

One  great  proof  of  the  Hereford  being  a  pure  and  distinct  race  is  that, 
although  crossed  with  whatever  breed  may  be  desired,  the  true  Here- 
ford marking  is  sure  to  show  itself;  and  if  an  animal  has  only  a  quarter 
strain  of  blood,  the  Hereford  marking  is  still  there.  The  great  object 
in  America  now  is  to  improve  the  cattle  as  beef  producers,  and  to  put 
the  good  roasting  pieces  on  the  narrow-chined,  bad-backed  cattle  of  the 
plains;  this  they  believe,  and  rightly  too,  the  cross  with  the  Hereford 
will  do.  Another  great  point  in  favor  of  the  cross  is  the  power  of  the 
Hereford  to  endure  knocking  about  and  rough  usage  better  than  more 
delicate  cattle,  and  this  is  of  the  very  greatest  importance  when  consid- 
ering the  vast  distances  the  cattle  have  to  travel  through  America,  and 
by  sea,  before  they  reach  this  country  as  beef. 

A  recent  purchaser  of  a  large  herd  of  Herefords  in  this  country  writes 
that  they  had  a  very  rough  passage  out,  and  the  hatches  had  to  be  all 
battened  down,  but  he  had  no  losses,  and  all  arrived  in  capital  condi- 
tion, none  the  worse  for  their  knocking  about.  He  could  only  account 
for  this  from  the  fact  that  this  breed  of  cattle  could  stand  such  usage 
better  than  others  or  he  should  have  had  serious  loss.  As  to  their  not 
feeding  so  well  in  stalls  or  attaining  such  great  weights  there  is  proof 
from  many  trials,  and  from  Smithfield  statistics,  that  they  are  little  be- 
hind, if  not  equal  to  any  other  known  breed  of  cattle. 

Says  another  authority : 

The  Shorthorn  has  no  quality  superior  to  that  which  the  Hereford  possesses  ;  if  it 
has,  let  it  be  fairly  shown.  Take  each  point  in  order:  Both  breeds  have  been  well 
tried,  both  as  graziers  and  feeders.  It  is  acknowledged  that  the  Hereford  is  the  best 
grazer,  and  it  is  asserted  in  this  country  and  America  that  four  Herefords  can  be  fed 
on  the  same  meat  as  three  Shorthorns.  There  is  evidence  to  show  that  the  milking 
quality  of  the  Hereford  is  as  good  as  the  high-cl^ss  Shorthorn,  and  their  milk  is 
much  richer.  The  London  market  bears  testimony  to  the  superiority  of  the  Hereford 
meat  by  always  quoting  it  in  advance  of  the  Shorthorn.  Their  early  maturity  and 
weight  for  age  has  been  tested  again  and  again,  and  there  is  little  difference  in  either 
breed.  The  merit  of  the  Hereford  for  crossing  purposes  has  been  disputed,  but  now 
it  is  an  indisputable  fact  that  they  are  fast  gaining  ground  in  the  good  opinion  of 
grazers.  A  great  many  bulls  are  now  sold  to  dairyVarmers  to  cross  with  their  Short- 
horn cows,  as  they  say  they  can  get  their  calves  ready  so  much  more  quickly  for  the 
butcher,  and  if  kept  on  for  bullocks  they  beat  the  ordinary  run  of  Shorthorns  in  apti- 
tude to  fatten  and  in  quality.  To  mention  a  few  instances:  Eight  Hereford  grade 
steers  were  put  up  to  feed,  and  sixty  Shorthorn  grades  were  picked  out  of  a  six  hun- 
dred lot,  and  then  the  best  of  the  eight  and  the  best  of  the  sixty  were  killed  as  a  beef 
test.  A  large  cattle-breeder  used  nothing  but  Shorthorn  bulls  to  three  hundred  cows, 
and  could  only  make  some  £3  or  £4  of  his  grade  yearling  bulls.  The  same  man  now, 
by  using  Hereford  bulls  to  the  same  cows,  lias  sold  his  yearling  bulls  at  £15  each, 

H.  Ex.  51- 8 


114  CATTLE   AND    DA1EY    FARMING. 

Again,  another  farmer,  who  used  to  make  £6  each  of  his  grade  Shorthorn  heifers, 
makes  £16  each  off  his  grade  Herefords  at  the  same  age.  The  fact  that  these  men  are 
no  breeding  enthusiasts,  bub  practical  American  beef-producing  farmers,  goes  along 
way  to  show  the  turn  things  are  taking  in  that  country. 

Weight  and  value  of  Hereford  cattle. — At  the  last  Sinithfield  show, 
Hereford  steers  in  the  class  under  two  weighed,  first  prize,  13f  cwt., 
twenty-two  months ;  second  prize,  14  cwt.,  twenty-three  and  one-half 
months  ;  and  third  prize  nearly  as  high.  The  weights  were  tolerably 
even  in  all  the  classes.  In  steers  under  three,  firsi  prize  was  17  cwt., 
at  two  years  seven  and  one-half  months ;  second  prize,  16J  cwt.,  at  two 
years  eight  months.  In  the  class  under  four,  first  prize  weighed  17f 
cwt.,  at  three  years  eight  months 5  second  prize,  1S£  cwt.,  at  three  years 
four  months.  In  heifers,  first  prize  weighed  14f  cwt.,  at  three  and  one- 
half  years;  second  prize  weighed  17  cwt.,  at  three  years  two  months. 
The  winning  cow  was  20f  cwt.,  at  eleven  and  one- third  years. 

No  particulars  of  value  can  be  obtained  as  to  the  performances  of  pure 
Herefords  in  milk,  butter,  or  cheese.  It  is  not  used  for  draft  of  any  kind, 
and  it  is  chiefly  bred  in  the  west  of  England,  Herefordshire,  and  Wor- 
cestershire, although  many  successful  breeders  are  scattered  through- 
out the  country  upon  all  soils.  Herefords  are  driven  to  all  the  great 
midland  fairs  for  farmers,  who  purchase  them  largely  for  fattening. 
The  chief  grasses  grown  are  clovers,  vetches,  and  the  best  perennials. 
That  the  Herefords  will  do  well  on  heavy  as  well  as  light  land  is  now 
admitted.  We  can  point  to  cases  within  our  own  knowledge  where 
at  the  Christmas  markets  Herefords  brought  in  to  fatten  have  beaten 
everything  else  in  realizing  top  prizes,  although  in  a  county  where 
they  are  comparatively  little  known. 

Milking  qualities  of  the  Herefords. — The  milking  qualities  of  the  Here- 
fords have  no  doubt  been  seriously  neglected  in  the  past,  and  are  simi- 
larly treated  by  breeders  generally  at  present;  but  there  is  no  reason  for 
doubting  that  as  milkers  the  existing  herds  show  a  very  considerable 
improvement.  As  a  rule  the  Hereford  cows,  when  contrasted  with  ex- 
tremely large  bulls  and  oxen,  are  somewhat  small,  but  is,  of  course,  in  no 
way  small  as  we  apply  this  term  to  Kerries,  Ayrshires,  or  Channel  Islands 
cattle.  The  cause  of  the  undeveloprnent  of  good  milking  qualities  in  all 
Hereford  herds  is  not  far  to  seek.  The  soil  of  the  locality  which  saw 
the  breed  originate  is  admittedly  not  suited  to  dairy  cattle,  conse- 
quently there  is  not  that  attention  given  to  the  improvement  of  the 
herds  as  milkers  as  would  be  the  case  were  they  in  a  district  better 
suited  to  further  their  dairy  properties.  In  its  original  habitat  the 
custom  which  prevails  is  to  regard  the  steers  as  the  source  of  pecuniary 
profit,  and  whereas  in  most  other  parts  it  is  the  general  practice  to 
give  the  females  the  preference  in  rearing,  it  is  much  more  usual  for 
both  male  and  female  Hereford  calves  to  be  similarly  treated,  the  pref 
erence  being  given  to  the  males.  This  practice  largely  obtaining  is 
obviously  calculated  to  prove  detrimental  to  milking  properties.  The 
outcome  of  all  this  is  that,  as  a  rule,  the  Hereford  is  wanting  in  dairy 
qualifications.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  exception  does  not  strengthen 
the  rule,  even  if  it  proves  it,  for  where  pure  bred  Hereford  stock  is  kept 
purposely  for  dairy  requirements,  where  the  good  milkers  are  kept,  and 
the  bad  and  indifferent  are  weeded  out,  it  is  soon  very  obvious  to  the 
most  prejudiced  that  high  milking  qualities  are  resident  in  the  Hereford. 

(6)  SUSSEX  CATTLE. 

Mr.  Forster,  of  Otham,  Kent,  a  well-known  breeder,  says : 
The  Sussex,  as  a  rule,  are  very  poor  milkers,  giving  scarcely,  if  ever,  snfficKmt  to 
rear  their  own  calves,  and  are  worse  butter-makers.    Their  weight,  of  course,  differs 


THE   UNITED  'KINGDOM.  115 

according  to  the  system  of  feeding.  A  Sussex  heifer  last  Christmas,  which- 1  exhibited, 
under  the  age  of  four  years,  showed  a  weight  of  148  stone  of  8  pounds  to  the  stone, 
and  a  steer  exhibited  last  year,  aged  two  years  and  eleven  months,  weighed  196  stone. 
These  were  specially  fattened  for  exhibiting,  but,  as  a  rule,  steers  killed  under  three 
years  and  fattened  in  the  usual  way  would  scale  from  90  to  112  stone.  They  require 
good  loamy  soil,  and  the  better  the  grass  the  earlier  they  can  be  made  to  reach  the 
butcher.  It  is  a  great  thing  to  keep  all  young  stock  well  from  birth,  housing  warmly 
and  feeding  them  liberally  with  a  little  linseed-cake  and  cracked  corn  from  weaning 
time.  The  steers  are  used  very  little  for  draft  purposes. 

With  regard  to  the  housing  of  the  Sussex,  one  must  be  guided  by  the  accommoda- 
tion which  his  farm  buildings  afford,  but  at  all  events  young  beasts  should  be  kept 
warmly  housed.  I  use  for  feeding,  in  addition  to  what  I  have  referred  to  above,  a 
mixture  of  oil-cake  and  corn,  and  a  few  roots  are  advisable.  As  to  breeding,  this  is  a 
great  secret.  Ascertain  the  weak  points  of  a  cow,  and,  if  possible,  counteract  them 
by  selecting  a  bull  perfect  in  the  deficiencies  of  the  other.  I  think  more  depends  on 
the  selection  of  a  good  bull  than  anything  else,  and  I  do  not  consider  any  price  too 
exorbitant  for  a  perfect,  good  colored  and  constituted  animal. 

Mr.  Page,  another  large  breeder,  says : 

The  Sussex  cattle,  as  a  rule,  are  bad  milkers,  but  capital  flesh-makers,  and  if  well- 
bred,  make  it  up  quickly.  I- seldom  keep  them  for  milking,  but  bring  up  calves  with 
them.  The  following  are  the  measurements  and  weights  of  a  few  Christmas  beasts 
which  were  shown  at  Islington  and  took  prizes : 

Sussex  heifer,  three  years  old,  7  feet  8  inches  by  4  feet  9  inches  =  55  score.    Live 

weight  15  cwt.,  1  quarter. 
Sussex  heifer,  1  year  11  months,  7  feet  7  inches  by  4  feet  8  inches = 52  score. 

Live  weight  14  cwt.,  3  quarters. 

Sussex  steer,  1  year  11  months,  7  feet  4  inches  by  4  feet  4  inches  =  46  score. 
Live  weight  12  cwt.,  3  quarters. 

At  the  above  show,  in  December,  1883,  the  first  prize  steer,  twenty-one  months, 
weighed  11^  cwt.  ;  the  second  prize,  twenty-two  and  a  half  months,  13£  cwt.  The 
first-prize  steer,  two  years  eleven  and  three-quarter  months,  weighed  19  cwt. ;  the 
second  prize,  two  years  seven  and  a  half  months,  14  cwt.  The  first  prize  steer,  three 
years  eight  and  one-quarter  months,  was  18f  cwt. ;  the  second  prize,  three  years  nine 
and  three-quarters  months,  20£  cwt.  The  first  prize  heifer,  three  years  and  one- 
quarter  month,  scaled  16J  cwt. ;  the  second  prize,  three  years  two  months,  14  J  cwt.  The 
first  prize  cow,-  five  years  eight  months,  weighed  14  cwt.  ;  the  second  prize,  six  and 
three-quarter  years,  15f  cwt.  The  Sussex  beast  is  a  very  large-framed  red  beast,  en- 
tirely whole-colored,  and  rather  higher  on  the  legs  than  the  Devon.  Although  it  is 
so  largely  grazed  upon  the  Sussex  Downs,  the  breeders  prefer  the  hair  to  be  long  and 
silky,  these  generally  having  a  mellower  skin  and  feed  better.  In  the  majority  of 
cases  it  is  the  custom  to  work  the  steers  from  three  years  old  until  they  are  six  or 
seven,  when  they  are  generally  put  up  to  fatten,  which  they  do  rapidly.  The-  heifers 
are  seldom  bred  from  until  they  are  two  and  a  quarter  years,  producing  their  first 
calf  at  three  years.  In  working,  all  the  oxen  are  kept  in  good  condition,  for  if  too 
low  it  is  most  difficult  to  bring  them  back  to  a  fleshy  state  afterwards. 

The  points  of  the  Swssex  are  as  follows :  Eye  rather  prominent ;  wide  across  the 
forehead  ;  neck  medium  in  length  and  cleanly  made  under,  with  a  small  dewlap,  the 
top  part  of  which  is  straight  to  the  head.  The  nose  is  rather  wide  and  thin  between 
the  nostril  and  the  eye,  the  tops  of  the  plate  bones  are  not  overwide,  the  sides  straight 
and  without  any  projection  at  the  shoulder  point ;  the  breast  is  wide  and  projecting 
forward;  straight  fore-legs,  bone  rather  fine,  medium  in  length;  back  straight  be- 
hind the  shoulder-blades  and  with  the  hollo wness  which  is  generally  seen  when  the 
blades  are  wide ;  body  very  round,  with  a  straight  chine ;  broad  ribs,  decidedly  nar- 
row between  the  first  rib  and  the  hip  bone ;  loin  flat  and  nearly  as  wide  at  the  fore 
as  at  the  hind  end,  each  side  lying  on  a  level  with  the  chine,  and  almost  parallel — if 
the  ribs  are  well  sprung  this  will  generally  be  the  case ;  hip  bones  broad,  with  a  wide 
space  between,  and  lying  nearly  as  high  as  the  chine ;  the  rump  should  be  long  and 
flat  and  wide  at  the  setting  on  of  the  tail ;  the  tail  should  drop  exactly  between  the  tip 
of  the  rump  and  what  is  generally  known  as  the  first  touch ;  the  outside  of  the  thigh 
is  flat,  without  fullness  behind. 

In  breeding,  the  calf  is  seldom  allowed  to  take  all  the  milk  of  the  cow,  which  is 
taken  from  it  all  day.  It  is  allowed  to  suck  two  of  the  teats  after  the  milkmaid  has 
drawn  the  other  two,  getting  in  addition  to  this  a  small  quantity  of  bran  or  ground 
oats,  which  is  left  for  it  in  a  small  trough.  At  a  month  old  it  is  usually  allowed  to 
run  with  her  throughout  the  day,  but  is  taken  from  her  for  the  night.  A  portion  of 
the  morning's  milk  is  then  taken  and  the  calf  allowed  the  remainder.  This  is  tho 
general  practice  until  the  calf  is  weaned.  It  is  then  fed  upon  cut  grass,  clover,  hay, 
and  bran  until  it  is  turned  out  upon  the  pasture,  when  the  moal  feeding  is  increased  , 


CATTLE   AND   DAIBY   FAKMING. 

until  the  following  winter,  when  it  takes  its  place  among  other  yearlings  in  the  yard 
and  is  allowed  to  browse  upon  the  various  products  of  the  farm,  getting  a  certain 
allowance  of  roots,  meal,  and  cake  each  day. 

In  Sussex  the  oxen  are  generally  worked  with  a  double  yoke  until  they  attain  their 
full  growth,  at  6  years.  As  the  ox  is  a  slow  mover,  it  is  injurious  to  drive  him  too 
fast,  and  this  is  the  case  with  the  Sussex.  When  lirst  yoked,  steers  should  bo  kindly 
treated  and  worked  an  hour  or  two  only  in  the  day  with  steady  older  beast,  that  they 
may  be  gradually  broken  into  the  work.  Those  working  together  should  be  of  equal 
strength  and  height,  otherwise  the  weaker  animal  will  do  more  than  his  share,  and, 
perhaps,  tax  his  strength  too  far.  The  weaker  beast  may  have  an  advantage  given  it, 
if  such  is  required,  by  slightly  altering  the  chain  of  the  yoke.  In  hot  weather  Sus- 
sex cattle  must  not  bo  driven  too  hard  or  the  constitution  will  be  affected. 

The  following  is  an  old  system  in  Sussex  for  working  cattle  in  succession  :  To  bring 
8  steers  into  work  each  year,  it  is  necessary  to  save  16  calves,  10  males  and  6  females. 
Eight  of  the  best  steer  calves  should  be  brought  into  work  when  three  years  old,  and 
the  remaining  2  may  be  turned  off  to  fatten.  The  6  heifers  may  each  produce  a 
calf  at  three  years  old,  when  the  breeder  should  select  4  of  his  best  heifers  to  put  into 
his  dairy,  and  the  other  2  be  sold  or  turned  off  to  fatten  when  they  have  reared  their 
calves.  By  this  means  a  team  of  24  working  oxen  and  a  dairy  of  20  cows  may  be  kept 
up.  Thus,  8  three  years  old,  8  four  years  old,  8  five  years  old.  As  these  arrive  in  suc- 
cession at  six  years  old  8  will  be  turned  off  the  team,  either  for  sale  or  grazing  on  the 
farm ;  when  8  three-year-old  steers  will  be  brought  into  the  team  to  supply  their  places. 

Experiments  have  been  made  to  test  the  advantages  of  yokes  or  collars,  and  it  has 
been  pretty  conclusively  shown  that  the  Sussex  yoke  is  the  best  system  known.  In 
one  trial  between  6  beasts  yoked  and  4  in  collars  there  were  but  three  minutes'  differ- 
ence in  an  acre,  which  was  well  ploughed  in  4  hours  and  10  minutes.  Stall-feeding  is 
practised  in  some  cases  in  Sussex,  when  a  manger,  water-trough,  and  fodder-rack  are 
provided.  One  gentleman  gives  his  working  oxen  2  bushels  of  chaffed  oats  straw 
daily,  with  3  gallons  of  barley  or  beans  and  bran  mixed.  Sometimes  barley  or  pollard 
is  used  instead  of  the  beans  'or  bran,  and  when  potatoes  are  given,  which  is  sometimes 
the  case,  a  portion  of  the  corn  is  knocked  off.  Hay  is  seldom  given  except  the  beasts 
are  at  work,  and  then  only  as  a  bait.  In  fattening  these  beasts  this  gentleman  gave 
the  same  quantity  of  chaff  and  j  ust  double  the  quantity  of  the  other  food  s.  His  beasts 
are  fed  twice  a  day  and  the  chaff  is  steamed.  The  cows  in  the  winter  time  are  also 
largely  fed  on  oat-straw,  with  bran  and  potatoes,  but  in  summer  dairy  cows  get  no 
corn  at  all. 

(7)  JERSEY  CATTLE. 

The  following  are  the  points  of  Jersey  cattle  as  established  by  the 
Jersey  Agricultural  Society : 

The  cow  and  purity  of  breed.— On  both  parents'  side  reputed  for  pro- 
ducing rich,  yellow  butter — four  points ;  head  small,  fine,  and  tapering ; 
eye  full  and  lively;  face  lean  and  of  a  smoky  color;  muzzle  line  and  en- 
circled with  white ;  horns  polished,  a  little  crumpled,  tipped  with  black ; 
ears  small  and  of  an  orange  color  within ;  back  straight  from  the  withers 
to  the  setting  of  the  tail ;  chest  deep,  and  nearly  on  a  line  with  the  belly — 
four  points ;  hide  thin,  movable,  but  not  too  loose,  well  covered  with  soft 
hair  of  good  color,  two  points;  barrel-hooped  and  deep  well-ribbed  home, 
having  but  little  space  been  the  ribs  and  hips ;  tail  fine,  hanging  2  inches 
below  the  hock — four  points ;  fore  legs  straight  and  fine ;  thighs  full 
and  long,  close  together  when  viewed  from  behind;  hind  legs  short, 
the  bones  rather  fine;  hocks  small,  not  to  cross  in  walking — two  points  ; 
udder  full,  well  up  behind ;  teats  large  and  equally  placed,  being  wide 
apart,  with  veins  large  and  swelling — four  points;  growth,  one  point; 
general  appearance  two  points ;  perfection  for  cows  and  heifers,  thirty- 
one  points. 

The  bull. — The  points  desirable  in  the  female  are  generally  so  with  the 
male,  but  must,  of  course,  be  attended  by  that  masculine  character 
which  is  inseparable  from  a  strong  and  vigorous  constitution.  Even  a 
certain  degree  of  coarseness  is  admissible,  but  then  it  must  be  so  ex- 
clusively 01  a  masculine  description  as  never  to  be  discovered  in  the 
females  of  his  get.  In  contradistinction  to  the  cow,  the  head  of  the 
bull  may  be  shorter,  the  frontal  bone  broader,  and  the  occipital  flat  and 


THE  -UNITED    KINGDOM.  117 

stronger,  that  it  may  receive  and  sustain  the  horn,  and  this  latter  may 
be  excused  if  a  little  heavy  at  the  base,  provided  its  upward  form,  its 
quality  and  color,  be  right.  Neither  is  the  looseness  of  the  skin  attached 
to  and  depending  from  the  under  jaw  to  be  deemed  other  than  a  feature 
of  the  sex,  provided  it  is  not  extended  beyond  the  bone,  but  leaves  the 
gullet  and  throat  clean  and  free  from  dewlap.  The  upper  portion  of 
the  neck  should  be  full  and  muscular,  for  it  is  an  indication  of  strength, 
power,  and  constitution.  The  spine  should  be  strong,  the  bones  of  the 
loin  long  and  broad,  and  the  whole  muscular  system  wide  and  thoroughly 
developed  over  the  entire  frame. 

Origin  and  improvement  of  the  Jcrseys.—M.r.  Jonathan  Smith,  Jersey, 
says : 

Our  breed  of  cattle  was  originally  the  same  as  that  of  Normandy,  of  which.  Jersey 
forms  a  part,  and  with  which  it  was  once  physically  connected.  Tradition  says  it 
was  severed  from  the  mainland  about  the  same  time  (possibly  by  the  very  same  tre- 
mendous irruption)  when  the  sea  swept  over  the  pleasant  fields  of  Eastern  Kent  and 
buried  them  forever  under  "  the  Downs,"  leaving  no  trace  of  what  once  had  been, 
save  the  shifting  Goodwin  Sands.  The  effects  of  this  disruption,  so  far  as  Jersey  is 
concerned,  are  in  every  way  most  interesting.  The  mainland  of  Normandy  has  lost 
everything  but  the  name  ;  her  too-powerful  neighbor,  France,  has  robbed  her  of  her 
independence,  her  laws,  and  even  her  language ;  and  the  ancient  home  of  our  kings 
has  for  centuries  been  a  province  of  France.  But  for  the  strip  of  silver  sea,  such  must 
have  been  the  fate  of  Jersey.  As  it  is,  she  has  successfully  repelled  all  attempts  to 
conquer  her,  and  has  remained  faithful  to  her  ancient  rulers.  She  is  still  governed  by 
the  very  laws  which  her  Duke  William  introduced  into  England  at  the  Conquest,  and 
her  mother  tongue  is  that  which  the  Conqueror  spake  himself. 

The  "Romance  de  Ron,"  written  by  our  Jersey  poet  Wace,  for  Henry  II,  in  the 
twelfth  century,  is  still  the  language  of  our  farmers,  though  unintelligible  to  the  Pa- 
risian of  to-day.  Jersey  has  the  same  forms  of  self-government,  the  same  land  tenure, 
the  same  laws  and  language,  the  same  manners,  customs,  and  habits  that  she  had 
800  years  ago.  And  so  with  her  cattle.  The  silver  streak  separating  Jersey  from  the 
continent  converted  it  into  one  great  farm,  with  the  sea  for  its  ring  fence  ;  and  the 
same  conservative  spirit  has  been  effectual  in  keeping  the  breed  pure  from  any  foreign 
taint.  Jersey  has  thus  enjoyed  for  centuries  the  very  happiest  conditions  for  produc- 
ing a  distinct  and  excellent  breed  of  cattle,  to  which  must  be  added  the  advantages 
of  her  climate,  equally  free  from  arctic  cold  and  burning  heat,  which  permits  her  cat- 
tle to  be  outpastured  almost  every  day  in  the  year  and  keeps  her  fields  perennially 
green.  These  favorable  conditions  have  been  put  to  advantage.  The  original  stock, 
the  Normandy  breed,  has  long  been  (and  still  is)  famous  for  its  butter  qualities. 
These  have  been  steadily  and  perseveriugly  developed  by  our  farmers,  who  have  per- 
sistently bred  for  that  single  object;  and  the  Jersey  has  been  brought  to  its  present 
perfection  by  simply  following  out  this  one  idea — butter !  Hence  it  has  been  the  in- 
variable custom  for  ages  never  to  uso  a  bull  before  seeing  his  dam  and  being  satisfied 
as  to  her  yield  of  butter.  Unless  this  j>roved  satisfactory,  no  other  point  in  the  bull 
himself  or  his  dam  availed  anything ;  nobody  would  use  him.  This  idea  still  governs 
the  vast  majority  of  our  island  breeders  and  those  of  America,  and  doubtless  still 
greater  triumphs  await  them  in  the  udders  of  the  future. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  of  late  years  some  English  breeders  have  taken  upon 
themselves  to  setup  a  new  standard — solid  color;  that  is,  the  absence  of  white  mark- 
ings in  the  coat — which  has  absolutely  no  foundation  at  all  but  the  oddest  caprice. 
It  is  neither  a  peculiarity  of  the  breed  nor  a  sign  of  purity  of  race,  nor  of  any  other 
quality  whatever,  bad  or  good ;  it  is  simply  a  blind  alley  leading  nowhere.  The  sin- 
gle aim  and  end  of  our  efforts  has  hitherto  been  butter,  and  it  is  this  concentration 
of  the  energies  of  all  our  breeders  in  one  direction  for  so  long  a  period  which  has 
doubtless  been  the  chief  agent  in  improving  the  breed  and  making  it  whatit  now  is — 
the  best  of  butter  cows.  Let  us  hand  down  the  breed  to  our  children  at  the  least 
not  worse  than  we  found  it. 

Besides  the  steady  pursuit  of  one  object  for  so  many  generations,  and  the  careful 
selection  of  sires  to  that  end,  there  are  two  other  peculiarities  of  management  in  Jer- 
sey— tethering  the  cows  and  feeding  the  calves  by  hand. 

Tethering  cattle  in  Jersey. — This  doubtless  originated  as  a  matter  of  necessity,  and 
has  since  been  continued  for  its  economy.  Owing  to  the  small  size  of  Jersey  farms, 
which  are  constantly  divided  at  the  death  of  the  owner  among  his  children,  and  the 
necessity  each  farmer  felt,  in  the  olden  time,  to  raise  as  far  as  possible  all  the  necessaries 
of  life  for  himself,  each  farm  had  its  patches  of  wheat,  turnips,  grass,  cabbages,  &c., 
growing  side  by  side,  often  all  in  tJae  same  field.  Hence  the  necessity  of  confining 


118  CATTLE    AND  - 1> AIK Y    FARMING 

the  cow  in  some  way  to  keep  her  from  damaging  the  allotment-^like  crops.  The  Bel- 
gians, whoso  i'arms  are  of  the  same  small  allotment  type,  have  met  the  same  difficulty 
in  a  different  way ;  they  keep  their  cows  slmt  up,  and  carry  them  all  their  fodder. 
The  Jersey  method  is  more  natural  and  wholesome,  less  laborious,  and  has  produced 
better  results.  It  has  originated  a  new  type,  the  best  butter  cow  in  the  world,  unique 
also  in  gentleness  and  beauty.  The  advantages  wo  claim  for  tethering  are : 

(a)  Economy  of  food. — Some  good  judges  have  put  this  as  high  as  50percent.  They 
assert  that  three  tethered  cows  may  be  kept  where  otherwise  two  could  only  be  kept. 
But  no  one  in  Jersey  is  willing  to  put  it  lower  than  one-third;  where  three  only  could 
find  pasture  loose,  one  may  increase  his  stock  one-third  and  keep  four  cows  if  he  teth- 
ers them.  The  grass  is  eaten  up  clean,  iine  and  coarse  alike ;  none  is  left  and  none 
spoiled. 

(6)  The  feed  is  regular  and  equal.  The  cow  is  not  pampered  one  day  and  starved 
the  next ;  its  appetite  is  not  spoiled,  nor  its  digestion  deranged. 

(c)  It  gives  perfect  command  of  the  food  supply.     A  cow  can  have  much  or  little, 
a  long  tether  or  a  short  one;  it  can  be  confined  to  a  poor  corner  or  favored  with  the 
fat  of  the  land,  as  may  be  necessary  or  desirable. 

(d)  It  saves  fences  and  economizes  food  that  would  otherwise  be  wasted,  from  the 
impossibility  of  letting  in  a  loose  cow  to  graze  it. 

(e)  The  cow  is  more  gentle.     Its  keeper  is  its  good  genius,  on  whom  it  is  constantly 
dependent  for  all  it  wants.    Its  docility  (and  affection  even)  follows  as  a  matter  of 
course. 

(/)  It  is  doubtless  to  the  tether  that  our  Jersey  cows  are  indebted  for  their  exquisite 
fineness  of  limb,  their  airy  grace,  and  general  elegance  of  proportions  and  appearance. 

(g)  More  butter  is  obtained.  Nothing  is  so  destructive  to  animal  fat,  whether  on 
the  llesh  or  in  the  udder,  as  motion  and  exercise.  This  is  so  well  known  as  to  be  pro- 
verbial, yet  how  often  is  it  overlooked.  The  same  farmer  who  fats  his  bullocks  quietly 
in  a  stall  will  give  his  cows  the  run  of  a  large  pasture,  as  if  they  were  in  training  for 
a  race. 

Bearing  calves  ~by  hand  in  Jersey. — Much  importance  is  attached  to  this  practice  in 
Jersey.  The  calf  is  never  allowed  to  suck  at  all,  and  has,  therefore,  never  to  be  weaned. 
The  rearer  has  perfect  command  of  the  calf's  food  and  can  vary  it  as  needed.  Like 
tethering,  it  increases  the  animal's  docility  and  its  attachment  to  its  attendant,  oa 
whom  it  has  to  depend  from  the  very  first.  The  effect  on  the  cow  is  equally  good. 
Having  never  suckled  her  calf,  she  does  not  fret  when  it  is  taken  from  her*.  More  im- 
portant still,  having  never  yielded  her  milk  in  any  way  but  to  the  gentle  persuasion 
of  the  milkmaid's  hand,  she  is  not  tempted  to  withhold  it. 

Milk  vs.  butter  yield. — Mr.  Walker  says  : 

While  cows  giving  exceptionally  large  quantities  of  milk  will  sometimes  make  large 
butter  tests,  as  a  rule  the  two  things  do  not  go  together ;  they  are  inconsistent  with 
each  other.  Breeding  for  quantity  of  milk  is  sure  to  depreciate  the  quality  and  re- 
duce the  butter  yield.  It  is  the  opinion  of  many  of  the  most  skilful  breeders  of  Jer- 
sey, and  those  of  longest  experience,  that  by  judicious  selection  of  individuals  from 
particular  families  it  would  be  far  easier  to  carry  the  milk  yield  of  a  family  of  Jerseys 
from  an  annual  average  yield  of  6  quarts  of  milk  per  day  up  to  12  quarts  per  day  than 
it  would  be  to  carry  an  annual' daily  average  yield  of  butter  from  12  ounces  up  to  18 
ounces  per  day.  That  is  to  say,  it  would  take  a  less  number  of  generations  from  the 
cows  with  which  the  breeder  started  to  double  the  flow  of  milk  of  a  family  than  to 
increase  their  butter  yield  by  one-half.  In  other  words,  ifc  is  a  problem  of  far  more 
difficulty  to  increase  the  butter  yield  of  cows  than  to  increase  their  milk  yield.  Every 
careful  observer  knows  that  the  number  of  quarts  a  cow  is  giving  will  fall  off  very 
considerably  without  materially  reducing  the  pounds  of  butter  she  will  make. 

It  has  taken  centuries  to  produce  the  richness  of  milk  of  the  Jersey  cows.  It  has 
been  done  and  is  being  done  against  the  ordinary  workings  of  the  laws  of  nature.  It 
is  against  natural  laws  that  the  milk  from  a  cow  should  be  so  rich  as  to  kill  her  calf, 
and  the  struggle  of  nature  is  to  reduce  the  richness  by  increasing  the  quantity ;  there- 
fore the  breeder  must  never  attempt  to  increase  his  butter  yield  by  coupling  an  ani- 
mal from  a  family. yielding  a  large  quantity  of  milk  of  poor  quality  with  those  giving 
rich  milk  in  less  quantity.  The  result,  as  a  rule,  must,  in  the  nature  of  things,  be  the 
opposite  of  that  which  the  breeder  seeks.  The  only  way  to  maintain,  to  say  nothing 
of  increasing,  the  butter  product  of  any  family  that  is  making  exceptionally  large 
yields  of  butter,  is  to  couple  those  animals  that  spring  from  the  very  best  specimens  in 
the  same  family,  when  not  already  in-bred  too  far,  and  of  the  very  best  proved  out- 
cross,  when  out-crossing  is  desirable. 

The  thing  to  be  done  with  the  Jerseys  giving  large  quantities  of  milk  of  inferior 
quality  is  to  abandon  them  to  milkmen,  whose  only  object  is  quantity  of  milk,  not 
quality.  They  have  a  keen  eye  for  large  milkers  among  Jerseys,  as  every  one  knows 
who  owns  Jerseys,  or  who  buys  Jersey  milk  in  any  city  or  large  town.  Breed  from 


THE    UNITED ;  KINGDOM.  119 

the  best  butter  families  under  all  circumstances.  Never  fight  against  accomplished 
facts.  He  who  fails  to  avail  himself  of  all  which  his  neighbors  have  accomplished  in 
breeding,  by  neglect  to  use  the  blood  that  has  been  thoroughly  developed,  on  the 
ground  that  he  ' '  probably  now  has  as  good,"  will  disastrously  fail  in  his  undertakings. 
It  is  simply  blind  egotism  that  must  inevitably  meet  its  fate. 

Treatment  of  Jersey  calves. — Under  this  head  each  breeder  would  write  a  different 
treatise.  No  two  probably  agree,  and  while  1  claim  no  special  fitness  to  discourse 
upon  this  topic,  and  thereforo'have  no  right  to  speak  authoritatively,  still,  as  I  have 
some  distinct  notions  upon  the  subject,  I  herewith  submit  them,  hoping  that  by  an 
*  interchange  of  views  those  methods  that  are  the  best  may  be  made  certain  by  a  com- 
parison of  the  experience  of  different  breeders. 

The  milk  of  a  very  rich  Jersey  cow  is  far  too  rich  for  her  calf.  If  she  has  a  large 
flow  immediately  after  calving,  the  calf  will  only  take  a  portion,  and  that  the  poorest 
in  quality,  and  be  comparatively  safe  if  left  with  its  dam  for  two  or  three  days.  If 
the  cow  is  slow  in  "coming  to  her  milk,"  and  what  the  calf  gets  is  above  the  average 
richness,  it  will,  in  many  instances,  be  as  fatal  to  the  calf  as  a  dose  of  poison.  Every 
year  scores  of  Jersey  calves  have  "died  very  mysteriously,"  when  the  truth  was,  the 
.  milk  of  their  respective  dams  was  too  rich  for  them.  When  a  Jersey  cow  drops  her 
calf,  remove  it  immediately,  if  the  cow  is  in  health.  If  the  cow  is  nervous,  and  frets 
badly,  fence  the  calf  off  in  one  corner  of  the  box,  so  that  the  cow  can  reach  it  and 
comfort  herself  with  it. 

Feeding  the  calf. — Give  a  pint  of  the  milk  first  taken  from  its  dam  every  few  hours 
a  few  times,  milking  every  drop  of  the  remainder  from  the  udder  at  each  time.  After- 
wards feed  about  two  quarts  of  the  milk  first  taken  from  its  dam  (as  that  is  much  the 
poorer  in  quality)  night  and  morning.  In  four  or  five  days  add  a  quart  of  hot  (have 
all  at  100°)  skimmed  milk  to  each  feed,  increasing  the  skimmed  milk  and  lessening 
the  whole  milk  as  the  calf  thrives  until  all  the  whole  milk  is  withdrawn  by  the 
twentieth  day,  if  the  calf  is  in  vigorous  health.  Always  have  the  milk  fed  to  the 
calf  at  blood  heat.  Keep  good,  bright,  clear,  sweet  rowen,  and  also  good  hay,  by  the 
calf  from  nearly  the  first.  Put  a  fresh  cut  sod  by  the  calf  every  few  days.  If  the 
calf  is  costive,  give  the  milk  cooler;  if  too  loose,  give  the  milk  at  as  high  a  tempera- 
ture as  the  calf  will  take  it,  and  in  much  smaller  quantities.  Give  one-third  the 
quantity  of  hot  milk,  and  give  two  raw  eggs,  broken  into  its  milk,  night  and  morn- 
ing, or  the  eggs  alone.  If  the  diarrhoea  does  not  readily  yield,  give  a  tablespoonful  of 
castor  oil  and  the  same  of  olive  oil,  with  a  teaspoonful  of  paregoric,  mixed  in  a  pint  of 
hot  milk.  Sometimes,  in  desperate  cases,  a  light  feed  of  pure  beef  tea  two  or  three 
times,  or  even  longer,  in  place  of  the  milk  food,  will  act  favorably.  Less  food  and 
hot,  with  little  or  no  medicine,  is  the  general  rule.  Do  not  resort  to  medicine  too 
hastily.  The  eggs  rarely  fail.  Never  give  any  medicine  if  it  can  be  avoided.  Al- 
ways keep  on  hand  the  oils  and  paregoric,  and  also  pulverized  chalk  and  pulverized 
charcoal.  Follow  the  oils  with  a  teaspoonful  of  pulverized  chalk  in  each  feed  of  milk 
until  the  symptoms  disappear,  substituting  the  charcoal  occasionally. 

Calf -fatting. — If  calves  are  wanted  to  be  always  fat  and  sleek,  in  a  fit  condition  to 
sell  to  the  butcher  or  to  persons  of  no  practical  experience,  who  want  to  see  things 
looking  fine,  and  the  breeder  cares  nothing  for  the  value  at  the  churn  of  the  de- 
veloped animals,  feed  oil-meal  boiled  for  hours  in  a  large  quantity  of  water  until  the 
liquid  is  of  about  the  consistency  of  thin  mucilage ;  or  feed  fine  corn-meal,  or  any- 
thing else  that  will  produce  fat.  If  the  object  of  the  breeder  is  to  have  his  young 
things  "  fill  the  eye ?;  of  the  inexperienced,  and  to  sell  them  to  such  persons  for  long 
prices  when  young,  always  keep  them  fat  and  sleek.  If  the  object  of  the  breeder  is 
the  honorable  one  of  producing  an  animal  the  superior  of  its  progenitors,  or  at  least 
their  equal,  to  sacrifice  any  prospect  of  immediate  gain  to  the  production  of  the  best 
practical  cow  possible  at  the  churn,  he  will  pursue  a  far  different  course.  Feeding 
young  things  for  present  effect  on  the  eye  of  the  inexperienced  is  necessarily  fatal  to 
their  largest  future  usefulness.  To  feed  any  substance  especially  calculated  to  pro- 
duce, fat  "to  a  bull,  or  at  any  time  before  she  comes  in  milk,  to  a  heifer,  will  induce 
the  habit  of  laying  on  fat,  which  will  continue  through  all  its  subsequent  career.  The 
younger  the  animal  is  when  this  bad  habit  of  making  flesh  and  fat  begins,  the  more 
controlling  it  will  be,  and  the  more  likely  the  animal  will  be  to  .transmit  that  habit 
to  its  offspring. 

Food,  $c. — Nothing  should  be  feed  to  bulls  more  stimulating  than  good  hay,  and  at 
times  a  few  oats,  shorts,  or  both,  with  coarser  food.  Plenty  of  coarse  hay,  straw,  and 
grass  even  should  be  given  at  times.  The  digestive  organs  of  a  butter  bull,  especially 
when  young,  should  be  taxed  and  distended  precisely  as  should  those  of  a  female  de- 
signed to  produce  butter.  Heifers  should  be  fed  on  nothing  but  skimmed  milk,  grass, 
rowen,  hay,  straw,  in  fact,  everything  to  distend  and  tax  their  digestive  organs,  and 
with  nothing  more  stimlating  before  they  drop  their  first  calf  than  oats  or  shorts 
or  similar  food.  The  rule  for  keeping  young  heifers  to  make  good  coats  is  rather  ex- 
travagantly expressed  by  saying,  "A"  heifer  should  have  a  paunch  large  enough  to 


120  CATTLE  AND   DAIRY  FABMING. 

turn  itself  round  in."  "  Unsightly  as  they  are  in  such  a  condition,  such  heifers  make  the 
best  cows. 

Oat-meal,  corn-meal,  or  anything  else  necessary,  should  fce  fed  as  an  alternative  to 
keep  a  young  animal  in  a  thrifty  growing  condition  which  is,  from  any  cause,  getting 
out  of  condition,  or  to  restore  one  that  is  oil'.  But  an  animal  that  maintains  its  vigor 
and  thrift  with  none,  other  things  being  equal,  gives  far  more  promise  of  future  use- 
fulness than  one  that  must  be  pampered.  The  rule  is  to  feed  j ust  enough  of  such  things 
as  are  found  necessary  to  keep  the  animal  in  a  thrifty  growing  condition  and  no  more 
— the  less  the  better — and  never  allow  a  milk  or  butter  animal  to  lay  on  fat.  Ex- 
perienced dairymen  never  go  into  herds  that  are  fat  and  sleek  for  their  cows.  They 
know  that  the  feeding  necessary  to  produce  such  conditions  in  milk  and  butter  ani- 
mals impairs  their  power  to  accomplish  the  thing  for  which  they  are  to  be  kept,  namely, 
the  making  of  milk  or  butter.  Meat,  not  milk  or  butter,  is  what  they  will  ever  after 
make.  They  will  "take  better  care  of  themselves  than  of  their  owners." 

Yield  of  Jerseys. — The  folio  wing  instances  have  been  recorded  among 
others  sent  in  to  the  newspapers  by  Jersey  breeders : 

Quayle,  in  his  "General  View  of  the  Agriculture  of  the  Islands  on  the  Coast  of 
Normandy,"  says  that  instances  are  named  of  14  pounds  of  butter  in  a  week,  and  that 
instances  of  12  pounds  are  well  attested. 

Mr.  H.  D.  Ingles,  in  a  work  on  the  Channel  Islands  cattle,  published  after  a  two- 
years'  residence  on  the  island,  says  the  general  average  produce  may  be  stated  as  10 
quarts  of  milk  per  day  and  7  pounds  of  butter  per  week. 

Gerard,  in  his  description  of  the  different  varieties  of  cattle,  says  of  the  Jerseys  in 
their  island  home :  In  one  year  the  produce  of  a  good  cow  in  butter  may  be  from  220  to 
300  pounds  (236  to  322  pounds  English  weight) ;  some  cows,  in  the  season,  may  give 
14  pounds  per  week. 

Mr.  Dauncey  gave  the  average  produce  of  his  entire  herd  during  the  year  1867  as 
within  a  fraction  of  7  pounds  per  head  per  week,  dry  or  milking. 

From  Mr.  Thornton's  essay  on  Jersey  cattle  and  their  management,  contributed 
to  the  journal  of  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  England,  wo  learn  that  Mr.  Fisk 
(Isle  of  Wight)  gives  his  greatest  return  from  fifteen  cows  as  10  pounds  each  weekly 
for  several  weeks.  In  the  same  essay  we  find  Mr.  Dumbrell's  herd  produced  in  1875, 
from  January  to  September,  7-J  pounds  per  week  but ;  as  Mr.  Durnbrell  explains,  we  may 
assume  the  calculation  is  based  on  the  period  the  cows  were  in  milk,  not  on  the  en- 
tire nine  month's,  dry  or  milking.  Writing  of  the  cows  on  the  island,  Mr.  Thornton 
says  7  to  10  pounds  of  butter  weekly  is  a  fair  standard,  but  5  to  6  pounds  per  week 
throughout  the  year  is  a  good  average  cow. 

Mr.  George  Curzon,  Eastcott,  Watford,  writes  in  the  supplement  to  the  English 
Herd-Book  of  Jersey  cattle,  that  the  produce  of  his  cows  in  butter  from  the  1st  October, 
1881,  to  30th  September,  1882,  averaged  per  cow  321  pounds  2£  ounces.  This  is  an 
average  of  a  little  over  6  pounds  per  week  throughout  the  year. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Partal  gives  his  average  yield  of  butter  per  cow  per  week  in 
1881  as  4  pounds  14  ounces,  and  in  1882  as  5  pounds  13  ounces,  but  we  append  further 
particulars  from  him : 

Home  farm  statement  as  to  dairy  produce,  1881. 

Total  yield  of  milk  from  21  cows gallons..  12,385 

Butter  made pounds..     4,972 

Cream  used ......pints..        324 

Milk  used do...     3,494 

Average  yield  of  milk  per  cow  per  annum gallons..        589 

3,494  pints  of  milk  =  218  pounds  of  butter ) 

323  pints  of  cream  =  162  pounds  of  butter „ pounds..  >5, 352 

218 +  162 +  4,972  =  total" butter  yield ) 

5, 352 -f- 21  cows  gives  per  cow  per  annum pounds..'       254-}j* 

Average  yield  of  butter  per  cow  per  week do 

Home  farm — statement  as  to  dairy  produce  1882. 

Total  yield  of  milk  from  22  cows gallons..  13,825 

Butter  made „ pounds..     6,307 

Cream  used .  pints..        381 

Milk  used .".."..."...".".". .V.V.V. .". do....     3,174 

Average  yield  of  milk  per  cow  per  annum gallons . .        628 

3, 174  pints  of  milk  =198  pounds  of  butter ) 

381  pints  of  cream  =  190  pounds  of  butter pounds . .  >  6, 695 

198 +190 +  6,307  =  total  butter  yield ~ ) 

6, 695 -•- 22  gives  per  cow  per  annum pounds..        304,5rf 

Average  yield  of  butter  per  cow  per  week « ....do &tJ 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM. 


121 


He  adds : 

Although.  I  do  not.  believe  for  one  moment  that  the  butter  alone  pays,  yet  with  the 
»kim  milk  the  addition  of  calves  and  pigs  makes  the  balance  at  the  end  of  the  year  on 
:the  right  side.  We  rear  a  good  many  calves  of  both  sexes,  and  have  no  difficulty  in 
disposing  of  them  ;  keeping  also  13  or  14  sows,  and  selling  their  progeny  at  thirteen 
or  fourteen  weeks  old,  as  stores,  pays  well.  The  pigs  are  kept  out  in  a  three-acre 
pasture  iield  in  open.weather  and  require  at  nights,  when  they  come  in,  little  but  skim 
:milk  and  wash,  which  is  not  expensive.  I  do  not  think  that  keeping  pigs  on  grass  land 
is  half  enough  adopted ;  it  keeps  them  healthy,  clean,  and  growing.  A  post  and  rail 
fence  with  strong  sheep  wire  netting,  keeps  them  from  breaking  out,  and  rings  in 
their  noses  prevent  their  injuring  the  pasture.  This  last  year  I  have  no  record  worth 
preserving  of  my  dairy  results,  as  I  lost  some  of  my  best  cows  in  the  summer,  which 
has  thrown  mo  out  terribly.  My  system  is  of  the  simplest  kind.  I  have  the  quantity 
of  milk  measured  every  day  as  brought  in,  and  a  record  kept  of  the  quantity  of  butter 
made  weekly.  The  reason  why  18d2  is  better  than  1881  in  results,  is  from  the  fact 
that  I  had  one  more  cow  in  the  dairy,  and  I  gave  all  my  cows  4  pounds  of  decorticated 
cotton-cake  with  chaff  and  mangel  in  the  winter  months  when  they  were  kept  in,  and 
I  pound  each  through  tho  summer  months  at  each  milking,  or,  in  other  words,  2  pounds 
-1  day.  They  had  2  pounds  in  tho  winter  months,  and  more  in  tho  summer  months. 
S.  shall  hope  this  year  (if  I  lose  no  more  cows)  to  do  better  than  last,  as  I  have  a  very 
mice  lot  coming  in  from  my  young  stock.  A8  I  seldom  or  never  buy,  a  loss  of  a  few 
cows  affects  mo  much.  I  have  bought,  but  have  never  found  any  that  please  mo  as 
well  as  those  I  breed  myself  from  cither  imported  bulls  (every  one  of  which  has  taken 
a  prize  when  in  ray  possession)  or  from  perfect  bulls  of  my  own  rearing.  I  have  no 
difficulty  in  selling  either  bulls  or  cows.  By  this  means  I  know  what  I  have  got  and 
what  I  am  doing  to  improve  my  stock.  By  buying  I  should  not  know  this  in  nine 
cases  out  of  ten. 

Among  the  detailed  records  sent  into  the  British  Dairy  Farmers'  As- 
sociation for  the  challenge  cup,  the  only  one  relating  to  Jerseys  was 
Lord  Braybrooke's,  which  is  interesting  and  sufficiently  good  to  be  an- 
nexed, although  the  yield  is  certainly  not  so  good  as  could  be  found 
upon  many  farms  where  Jerseys  are  kept  by  dairy  farmers. 

Dairy  record  of  Lord  Bray'brookti's  herd  of  Jerseys  for  1882. 


Milk. 

Cream. 

Butter. 

| 

ft 

f* 

1 

1 

S 
.2 

Quantity. 

Average 
per  week. 

Percentage. 

03 

r3 

o'S 

XjO  O, 

2§ 

j-  •— 

o  c 

1. 

X 
1 

£ 

d 

03 

| 

O 

O 

ll 

r|4 

1 

o 

o 

cS 

O 

0 

M 

jjH 

0, 

«4 

fi 

3 

80 

No. 

1882. 

Qts. 

Lb. 

Qts. 

Lb. 

Oz. 

Qts. 

Qts. 

*l 

1870 

Aug.  10 

47 

2,138 

5,  571 

45 

118 

10.  5  to  21.  5  =  15.  8 

299 

61 

f 

7' 

1  ,  796 

t2 

1873 

Au"1.    9 

27 

1,  476 

3,837 

54 

142 

12     to  21.  5  =  16.  8 

227 

81 

64 

1,227 

+3 

1873 

Apr.'    8 

32 

1,401 

3,751 

43 

117 

10.  5  to  23     =  15.  2 

193 

6 

8| 

71 

1,188 

4 

1874 

Nov.    8 

50 

3,609 

9,  IF  8 

72 

183 

9     to  20     =11.1 

364 

71 

6; 

9J 

3,207 

5 

1S75 

Nov.     6 

42 

•2,260 

5,880 

53 

140 

10     to  23     =  15.  1 

312 

71 

8- 

7 

1,918 

6 

1875 

Apr.    5 

43 

2,556 

6,667 

59 

155 

11     to  23     =  14.  8 

352 

8 

8: 

71 

2,204 

7 

1876 

Aug.    5 

50 

2,858 

7,428 

56 

148 

10     to  18      =13.4 

348 

6| 

7;  • 

8 

2,473 

8 

1877 

Sept.    5 

49 

2,295 

5,  991 

46 

122 

15     to  26     =  19.  5 

407 

81 

11:: 

54 

1,847 

9 

1877 

Feb.     4 

38 

2,363 

6,150 

62 

161 

11.  5  to  21     =  14.  7 

317 

81 

84 

71 

2,015 

1881. 

10 

1877 

Apr.     3 

26 

759 

1,970 

29 

98 

11.  5  to  19.  5  =  15.  1 

105 

4 

81 

7 

644 

1882. 

11 

1877 

July    4 

45 

1,923 

5,111 

42 

113 

13     to  31     =  20.  3 

352 

7J 

11J 

5i 

1,542 

12 

1878 

Feb.     3 

45 

1,615 

4,199 

35 

93 

14.  5  to  33     =  20.  6 

301 

6| 

11J 

51 

1,282 

18 

1878 

Dec.     4 

30 

1,193 

3,  104 

39 

103 

13.  5  to  20      =  15.  6 

167 

54 

8J 

7 

1,030 

14 

1878 

Oct.     4 

33 

1,176 

3,  071 

35 

93 

16.  5  to  24.  5  =  17.  5 

183 

9J 

6£ 

970 

15 

1879 

Oct.      2 

50 

1,768 

4,770 

35 

95 

15.  5  to  23.  5  =  18.  2 

286 

f>i 

lOJ 

6 

1,443 

16 

1879 

Jan.     1 

49 

2,932 

7,438 

59 

151 

10      to  25     =  14.  3 

380 

7£ 

^1 

7£- 

2,  512 

17 

1880 

Nov.    2 

47 

1,  294 

3,367 

27 

71 

11     to  24.  5  =  15.  3 

178 

8$ 

8| 

71 

1,096 

18 

1880 

Nov.     2 

43 

1,356 

3,  524 

31 

81 

10      to  19     =13.4 

162 

s| 

74 

Si 

1,  173 

19 

18SO 

Feb.     1 

31 

1,124 

2,924 

36 

94 

12     to  18.  5  =  14.  5 

142 

8 

72 

961 

20 

1880 

Dec.    2 

44 

2,  214 

5,  708 

50 

131 

11      to  24     =  14.  6 

296 

G£ 

84 

71 

1,883 

38,  310 

99,  748 

5,371 

32,411 

*  Killed  October,  1882. 

t  Killed  September,  1882. 

1  Died  (milk  lev  or)  November,  1382. 

S  A  bad  year  with  her.    Her  yield  in  1880  =  2,631  quatts,  1881  =  2,432. 


122 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

Analysis. 


Description. 

Milk. 

Butter. 

Skim 
milk. 

Under  4  years  of  age  : 

Quarts. 

1,781 
34 
40 

1,859 
35 
46 

2.756 
53 
54 

2,017 
38 
46 

Pounds. 

4,636 
89 
105 

4,855 
93 
121 

7,124 
137 
142 

5,262 
101 
121 

bounds. 

240 
*i 
5| 

281 

9 

353 

GJ 

283 

N 

6* 

Quarts. 

1,513 

29 
34 

1,  555 
29 
38 

*» 

47 

1,710 
32 
39 

4  years  and  under  (j  years: 

Average  per  cow  per  week  for  the  entire  year*.  ...  ......  ...... 

6  years  and  over  : 
Average  per  cow  for  the  year  *          .     .        ....      .............. 

Average  per  cow  per  week  "while  in  milk                               .  .. 

Entire  herd,  all  ages  : 

Average  per  cow  per  week  for  tho  entire  year*                            . 

Average  per  cow  per  week  while  in  milk  "                             .  .    .  . 

*  In  these  calculations  consideration  is  given  to  the  period  from  the  death  of  Nos.  2,  3,  and  5,  to  the 
end  of  the  year. 

Average  weight  of  milk  per  gallon pounds..    16Jf 

Average  cream  percentage do 15J 

Proportion  of  butter  to  niilk  (ounces  to  a  gallon) 8.972 

Proportion  of  butter  to  cream  (ounces  to  a  quart) 1-H 

Proportion  of  milk  to  butter  (quarts  to  a  pound)  .: 7.13? 


Comparative  richness  of  milk  at -different  stages  of  tlie  same  milking,  showing  the  groat  im- 
portance of  thoroughly  draining  a  cote's  udder.  [In  each  qase  the  result  given  is  the 
mean  of  six  days'  -testing.  ] 


Cow  No.— 

Percentage  of  cream. 

Comparison. 

First  i 
pint. 

Last  J 
pint. 

Pail,  i.  e., 
tho  entire 
yard. 

First  J 
pint. 

Lasti 
pint. 

Pail,  i.  e., 
the  entire 
yard. 

1       

5.8 
4.7 
4.5 
5.4 
10.0 
8.2 
7.1 
5.3 
3.7 
6.1 
5.9 

33.5 
26.2 
28.  G 
36.0 
34.8 
40.1 
36.0 
32.8 
40.0 
25.3 
26.5 

15.5 

14.4 
12.0 
18.7 
18.4 
15.8 
15.2 
15.3 
35.1 
13.8 
12.5 

1 

1 

1 
1 
1 
1 

5.77 
5.57 
5.24 
6.66 
3.48 
4.89 
'3.66 
6.18 
10.81 
4.14 
4.49 

2.67 
3.00 
2.66 
3.46 
1.84 
1.92 
2.14 
2.88 
4.08 
2.20 
2.11 

2 

3                                                               

4                                        

5  

6 

7  

8  

9  ... 

10  

11  

Food  of  cows  during  the  year  1883,  with  one  or  two  trifling  exceptions  in  individual  caws. 

Jan.  1  to  Feb.  19.— i  peck  bean-meal,  3  pecks  grains,  J  peck  malt  dust,  2  pecks  chaff,  8  pounds  hay,  10 

pounds  carrots  per  day;  two  to  four  hours  each  day  on  grass. 
Feb.  20  to  Apr.  2.— The  same,  with  10  pounds  of  mangold  instead  of  carrots;  three  to  six  hours  on 

grass. 

Apr.  3  to  May  7.— Hay  reduced  to  4  pounds,  other  food  same;  four  to  ten  hours  on  grass. 
May  8  to  May  21.— J  peck  bean-meal,  3  pecks  grains,  £  peck  malt  dust,  2  pecks  chaff,  4  pounds  hay,  10 

pounds  mangold ;  ten  to  twenty  hours  on  grass. 

May  22  to  July  9.— J  peck  bean-meal,  J  peck  crushed  oats,  1J  peck  grains,  1  peck  chaff,  10  pounds  man- 
gold; twenty  hours  on  grass. 
July  10  to  20.— J  peck  bean-meal,  J  peck  crushed  oats,  1  peck  chaff,  1£  peck  grains ;  twenty  hours  on 

grass. 
Aug.  21  to  Oct.  26.— J  peck  bean-meal,  &  peck  crushed  oats,  3  pecks  grains,  2  pecks  chaff;  twenty  hours 

on  grass. 
Oct.  27  to  Nov.  20.— J  peck  bean-meal,  J  peck  crushed  oats,  3  pecks  grains,  2  pecks  chaff,  and  4  pounds 

hay ;  eight  hours  a  day  on  grass. 
Nov.  21  to  Dec.  31.— J'peck  bean-meal,  £  peck  crushed  oats,  1  peck  grains,  10  pounds  carrots,  7  pounds 

hay,  J  peck  malt  dust;  .two  to  four  hours  a  day  on  grass. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  123 

Percentage  of  cream  from  the  milk  of  the  entire  herd,  for  each  week  in  the  year  1882. 


Week  ending  — 

Percent. 

"Week  ending  — 

Per  cent. 

Week  ending- 

Per  cent 

Week  ending— 

Per  cent. 

Jan.  8  

17.73 
10.75 
10. 
17.42 
10.13 
15.  90 
14.29 
14.  52 
14.23 
14.69 
16.16 
17.17 
10.79 

Apr.  9  

14.76 
16.18 
15.98 
15.09 
14.63 
16.  33 
14.96 
13.86 
14.61 
13.  83 
14.97 
15.86 
13.77 

July  9 

12.8 
12.59 
12.66 
14.4 
13.  64 
14.  37 
15.4 
13.8 
15.1 
14. 
15.5 
15.9 
16.5 

Oct.  8  

15.7 
16.1 
17.2 
10.4 
10.6 
17.3 
17. 
16.9 
17.5 
18. 
17.3 
17.8 
17.2 

Jan.  15     ... 

Apr  16 

July  16 

Oct  15 

Jan.  22  

Apr.  23    .     ... 

July  23 

Oct.  22      .     .  . 

,  Ian.  29  

••  Apr  30 

July  30 

Oct  99 

Fob.  5  
Fob.  12  
Feb.  11)  

!  May  7 

Au£  6 

^f  ov.  5 

i  May  14  
i  May  21  

An"  13 

Nov  12 

Au"  9o 

Nov  19   . 

Feb.  20  

i  Mav  28 

An"1  97 

Nov  '-'6 

Mar.  5  
Mar.  12  

Juno  4 

Sep*?  3 

Dec.  3 

Juno  11 

Sept  10 

Dec  10 

Mar.  19  

Juno  18 

Sept  17 

Dec.  17 

Mar.  20 

June  25 

Sept  24 

Dec  ''4 

Apr.2  

July  2 

Oct  1 

Dec  31 

Butter  to  a  gallon  of  milk,  and  milk  to  a  pound  of  butter,  in  comparison  with  its 
cream  percentage  as  shown  by  the  year's  testing. 


Butter  to  a 

Milk  to  a 

Butter  to  a 

Milk  to  a 

Butter  to  a 

Milk  to  a 

Cream. 

gallon  of 
milk. 

pound  of 
butter. 

Cream. 

gallon  of 
milk. 

pound  of 
butter. 

Cream. 

gallon  of 
milk. 

pound  of 
butter. 

Per  ct. 

Ounces. 

Quarts. 

Perct 

Ounces. 

Quarts. 

Per  ct. 

Ounces. 

Quarto. 

8    .. 

44  to  41 

134  to  14 

13 

74  to  8 

8  to  81 

17.5 

91  to  101 

51  to  64 

8.5.. 

41      5 

121      134 

13.5 

74       84 

7J     8} 

18 

_ 

10        11 

51      64 

9    .. 

5        5J 

114       121 

14 

71       84 

74     84 

18.5 

104     Hi 

54       6 

9.5.. 
10    .. 

54       51 
54       6 

11        12 

104     114 

14.5 
15 

8         81 

74     8 
CJ     7 

19 
19.5 

• 

104       114 
101       Hi- 

54      6 

54       5f 

10.5.. 
11     .. 

0*       61 

104     11 
94     104 

15.5 
16 

i|       9* 

6*      7 
64     7 

20 
20.5 

• 

ll         12 
115       124 

54       51 
5         54 

11.5.. 
12     .. 

64       7 

64     74 

9         104 
81         Cl 

16.5 
17 

9       104 
91     104 

64     7 
6       64 

21 
21.5 

- 

111       121 
12         134 

5         54 
41        54 

12.5.. 

61       74 

84        94 

The  proportion  of  butter  to  cream  has  varied  during  1882  from  16J 
to  18J  ounces  to  a  quart. 

Lord  Braybrooke's  figures  are  given  as  an  example  of  an  ordinary 
English  herd,  which,  although  about  the  oldest  in  the  Kingdom,  is  cer- 
tainly not  above  mediocrity,  although  tlje  yield  is  such  as  to  make  it 
decidedly  profitable.  The  best  butter-making. cows  in  England  are  un- 
doubtedly those  which  have  about  three-fourths  Jersey  blood  and  one- 
fourth  Ked  Poll,  Devon,  or  Shorthorn. 

Statistics  of  an  Isle  of  Wight  Jersey  herd.—hlr.  J.  E.  Fisk,  of  Bright- 
stone,  Isle  of  Wight,  who  has  kept  Jerseys  for  a  number  of  years,  de- 
clares his  belief  that  they  will  produce  a  larger  quantity  and  better 
quality  of  butter  than  any  other  breed  on  the  same  amount  of  food. 
He  says : 

I  have  compared  them  with  other  breeds  in  the  island  and  I  am  quite  satisfied  that 
they  are  the  best  butter  cows  I  know  of,  and  not  only  as  to  butter,  but  they  will 
compare  favorably  with  other  cows  in  quantity  of  milk,  and  that  of  a  richer  quality. 
Their  constitution  is  not  so  delicate  as  is  generally  supposed.  With  fair  manage- 
ment the  home-bred  Jerseys  are  comparatively  hardy,  and  this  can  be  seen  by  the 
general  treatment  of  my  herd.  The  colors  of  the  animals  are  mostly  whole  co'lor — 
silver  grey  and  fawn,  some  being  broken.  The  breed  which  was  originally  im- 
ported into  the  island  was  broken,  and  a  whole-colored  cow  was  seldom  to  be  seen. 
The  cows  are  not  housed  in  winter,  but  have  a  yard  with  an  open  shed,  good  straw  OK 
rough  hay,  and  a  run  on  the  pasture  in  the  day-time  if  the  weather  should  be  line. 
As  soon  as  they  calvo  I  house  them  and  feed  them  on  hay  and  bran  mash  for  several 
days  until  they  are  quite  safe  over  calving,  and  then  they  are  fed  with  6  pounds  of 
corn  meal  or  cotton  cake,  1  bushel  of  mangel-wurzel  and  hay,  and  a  run  on  a  fresh 
pasture  for  an  hour  or  two  in  the  day  if  the  weather  should  permit,  until  April  or 
May,  when  they  lie  out  at  night.  I  continue  the  meal  or  cake  as  long  as  the  cow  is 
milked,  and  vary  the  quantity  according  to  the  feed  tHey  obtain  on  the  pasture. 


124  CATTLE  AND- DAIRY  -  FARMING. 

The  young  stock  have  a  yard  with  a  shed,  and  feed  on  hay,  with  a  few  roots  or  3 
pounds  of  cake  per  day  through  the;  winter,  and  a  run  ou  tho  rough  pasture  through 
the  summer.  The  heifers  are  allowed  to  go  to  the  bull  at  fifteen  months  old.  The 
calves  which  are  weaned  are  taken  from  tho  cows  from  three  days  to  a  week  old,  and 
as  soon  as  they  will  drink  well  and  are  strong  they  are  kept  on  skim-milk,  good  hay, 
and  a  little  corn-meal  until  three  or  four  months  old.  If  it  should  ho  summer  they  are 
turned  out  on  the  pasture  in  tho  day  and  housed  at  night  until  they  are  old  enough 
to  lie  out.  I  hleed  the  calves  dropped  in  tho  spring,  in  the  fall  of  the  year,  as  a  pie- 
ventativo  for  quarter-evil.  I  reckon  that  my  whole  herd  in  summer,  including  heifers, 
give  12  quarts  of  milk  per  day,  but  I  have  several  cows  which  would  give  20  quarts. 
I  have  a  record  of  20  cows  giving  in  the  month  of  June,  1883,  25(5  quarts  of  milk,  29-J 
pounds  of  butter,  per  day,  and  1  cow  112  quarts  of  milk,  11  quarts  of  cream,  and  12 
pounds  of  butter  per  week  three  months  after  calving.  Tho  average  yield  of*  butter 
throughout  the  year  for  17  cows  and  C  heifers  is  6£  pounds  per  head.  In  tho  height  of 
summer  13  cows  averaged  12  pounds  each  per  week. 

Tho  weight  of  a  bull  or  cow  when  fat  ted  is  from  28  to  35  score. 

The  Jerseys  are  seldom  steered.  If  the  bull  calves  are  not  required  for  stock  they 
are  allowed  to  suck  the  dams,  and  fattened  as  calves,  weighing  from 60  tolOOpounds 
at  one  to  two  mouths  old.  The  mean  temperature  on  the  average  for  16  years  worked 
out  as  49°.38'.  In  the  winter  ifc  was  39°.99' ;  spring,  46°.92' ;  summer,  59°.63',  and  in 
autumn,  50°.78'.  During  one  year  there  were  242  days  on  which  a  southwest  wind 
was  prevalent ;  72  days  with  a  northeast^  and  40  with  a  northwest  wind.  Southeast 
winds  aro  very  rare.  Tho  island  rests  on  tho  Wealden,  and  the  surface  comprises 
clay,  gravel,  sand,  chalk,  freestone,  and  loam.  Tho  downs  are  chalk,  rising  from  400 
to  800  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  grasses  which  are  chiefly  cultivated  are 
the  several  sorts  of  rye  grass,  including  tho  Italian.  Clovers  aro  broad,  Dutch,  al- 
sike,  trefoil,  cow  clover,  and  trifoliuin. 

(8)  GUERNSEY  CATTLE. 

This  really  first-rate  breed  is  anative  of  one  of  the  Channel  Islands,  off 
the  coast  of  France,  and  is  largely  bred  by  a  class  of  farmers  who  hold 
small  quantities  of  land  which  they  cultivate  very  highly,  and,  like  the 
Jersey  people,  breed  a  much  larger  number  j>er  acre  than  is  done  in  any 
part  of  England.  They  are  a  most  docile  race,  well  cared  for  in  sheds 
in  the  winter,  and  almost  invariably  tethered  in  summer  on  the  grass. 
There  is  no  difference  of  opinion  in  England  as  to  the  merits  ot  the 
Jersey  and  the  Guernsey  among  those  who  understand  both  races,  but 
it  must  be  admitted  that  the  Jersey  is  a  very  much  greater  favorite, 
although  why  it  is  so  would  be  very  difficult  to  say  if  we  did  not  think 
that  color  and  a  more  deer-like  form  has  something  to  do  with  this. 
The  Guernsey  is  a  much  larger  beast  than  the  Jersey,  and,  although 
coarser,  is  still  extremely  delicate  in  texture  of  skin,  while  she  is  much 
more  fleshy,  is  far  more  easily  fatted,  and  is  salable  to  the  butcher  at 
almost  any  time,  provided  she  is  well  kept,  which  the  Jersey  certainly 
is  not.  Indeed,  it  may  be  fairly  estimated  that  when  an  old  Jersey  cow 
past  breeding  is  only  worth  £7  to  £8,  a  'Guernsey  is  usually  worth 
£15. 

This  race  is  now  bred  with  extreme  care,  although  it  has  some  faults 
from  a  butcher's  point  of  view,  being  bred  for  milk  almost  alone,  and 
by  a  comparatively  small  number  of  breeders.  The  color  is^  plainly 
speaking,  an  irregular  yellow  and  white,  or,  according  to  the  sna.de,  as 
it  is  generally  called,  orange  or  lemon  and  white.  It  is  a  grand  butter- 
making  cow,  and  will  equal  the  best  Jerseys,  while  it  is  certainly  a 
deeper  milker.  We  may  here  mention  that  the  Guernsey  breed  is 
strictly  confined  to  the  island  of  Guernsey,  as  the  Jersey  is  to  the  island 
of  Jersey,  and  although  the  last  named  was  for  many  years  known  as 
the  Alderney,  it  is  so  no  longer,  for  the  Alderney  people  have  at  last 
started  a  herd  book  for  their  own  race,  which  they  are  determined  to 
perfect  in  the  same  way  as  the  other  breeds  have  been  perfected. 
Guernsey,  small  as  it  is,  exports  between  one  and  two  thousand  cows 
annually,  the  majority  of  which  come  to  England,  and  at  the  present 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  125 

time  the  demand  for  really  good  cows  is  considerably  greater  than  the 
supply,  the  only  breeders  who  breed  carefully  finding  it  at  all  times  dif- 
ficult to  obtain  what  they  want. 

This  breed  is  one  which  it  will  pay  any  butter-maker  to  take  up  and 
perfect,  for  it  certainly  has,  as  will  be  seen  from,  whatwehave  said  and 
what  we  shall  show,  a  far  wider  scope  of  usefulness  than  the  Jersey  can 
possibly  have  while  it  is  bred  in  its  present  form.  For  crossing  the 
Guernsey  imparts  quality  of  milk  without  that  loss  of  quality  of  flesh 
which  is  generally  found  in  beasts  crossed  by  the  Jersey.  The  butter, 
like  the  cream,  is  always  wonderfully  rich  in  color,  and  extremely  deli- 
cate in  flavor,  and  many  cases  can  be  quoted  in  which  700  pounds  have 
been  reached  in  the  twelve  months,  although  these,  of  course,  are  ex- 
ceptional, while,  with  regard  to  the  quantity  of  the  milk,  it  is  generally 
found  that  8  quarts  is  within  the  mark,  good  herds  often  yielding  an 
average  of  1G  quarts  per  day  during  the  best  months,  although,  as  with 
other  cattle,  individal  animals  frequently  exceed  20  quarts. 

Another  good  feature  in  the  Guernsey  is  the  fact  that  it  is  not  only  a 
good  milker  after  calving,  but  continues  to  milk  well  during  the  whole 
season.  In  form  it  is  generally  fine  and  narrow  in  front,  widening  until 
it  reaches  the  hips,  which  are  broad.  The  udder  is  large  and  flat,  the 
teats  long  and  wide  apart,  and  the  escutcheon  perhaps  more  prominently 
pronounced  than  in  any  other  race.  It  is  generally  believed  that  one  or 
two  Guernsey  cows  in  a  herd  in  which  the  milk  is  less  rich  imparts 
quality  and  color  to  the  whole  of  the  butter  made.  Cheese  is  not  made 
from  this  race,  except  in  isolated  instances,  and  then  only  for  private 
use.  It  does  well  upon  all  soils,  and  we  know  instances  in  which  its 
returns  are  enormous,  although  the  situation  is  as  bleak  and  exposed  as 
the  Welsh  hills.  At  the  same  time  a  chalky  or  a  gravelly  soil  is  pre- 
ferred. In  its  native  island  and  in  the  south  of  England  it  does  better 
work  than  in  the  north,  but  some  of  the  northern  breeders  are  much 
pleased  with  the  results  they  obtain  from  it,  and  do  not  seem,  to  consider 
it  at  all  inappropriate  to  their  districts.  It  is  never  used  for  draft 
purposes. 

Experience  of  Guernsey  breeders. — Mr.  J.  de  Garis,  Eouvets,  says: 

My  herd  in  1882  consisted  of  1  cow,  fourteen  years  of  age,  calved  February,  1882; 
1  cow,  ten  years  old,  calved  December,  1881;  1  cow,  four  years  old,  calved  March, 
1882 ;  1  cow,  same  age,  calved  July,  18&2;  1  heifer  (first  calf),  calved  May,  1882.  I 
used  not  less  than  4  quarts  of  milk  daily  in  my  family.  The  following  are  the  amounts 
of  marketable  butter  made  each  month :  January,  69  pounds;  February,  70 pounds ; 
March,  96  pounds ;  April,  134  pounds;  May,  96  pounds;  June,  109  pounds;  July,  136 
pounds;  August,  132  pounds;  September,  151  pounds ;  October,  112  pounds ;  Novem- 
ber, 77 pounds ;  December  (partly  estimated),  80 pounds;  total,  1,262 pounds;  average 
per  cow,  252  pounds. 

Mr.  W.  Carrington,  of  King's  Mills,  says  that  his  cow  Le  Cheminant 
produced  an  average  of  16  pounds  per  week  for  mouths  after  calving. 

Messrs.  0.  Smith  &  Son  state  that  three  cows  owned  by  them  gave 
the  following  records : 

Vesta,  born  March  1,  1873,  calved  May  7,  1882,  served  June  11,  1882,  in  five  days — 
December  4  to  December  8,  inclusive— gave  60|  quarts,  an  average  per  day  of  12.1 
quarts;  Vesta  Second,  born  April  25,  1877,  calved  October  12,  1882,  served  November 
2,  1882,  gave  in  five  days,  of  same  date,  74  quarts,  an  average  of  14-J  quarts  per  day ; 
Vesta  Third,  born  May  1,  1878,  calved  November  27,  1882,  gave  in  live  days,  same 
date,  85  quarts,  an  average  of  17  quarts  a  day. 

Mrs.  White,  Roussaillerie  Farm,  states  that  two  cows  owned  by  her 
have  given  the  following  quantities  of  milk  during  the  year  in  five 
months : 

Eed  cow,  six  years  of  age,  2,482  quarts,  record  commencing  July  1  and  closing 
November  30;  number  of  days'  record,  153;  average  per  day,  16^-  quarts.  Brown 
cow,  eight  years  of  age,  1,944£  quarts;  record  during  the  same  time,  153  days;  aver- 
age per  day,  12.6. 


126 


CATTLE   AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 


M ilk  record  of  a  Guernsey  cow. — An  English  breeder  of  the  Guernsey 
gives  the  following  particulars  with  regard  to  the  cow  No.  630,  in  the 
Royal  Guernsey  Agricultural  Society's  Herd-Book.  She  calved  on 
15th  May  last,  and  the  record  is  from  July  9  to  15.  The  cow  was  fed 
on  clover  only.  The  amount  of  butter  made  from  the  week's  yield  was 
15  pounds  G  ounces : 


Date. 

Morning. 

Xoon. 

Night. 

Total. 

Lbs.  oz. 
15  8 

Lbs.  oz. 
10  8 

Lbs.  oz. 
14  12 

Lbs.  oz. 
40  12 

16  0 

9  8 

15  8 

41   0 

14  8 

12  0 

12  8 

39   o 

16  0 

11  0 

13  0 

40   0 

14  8 

11  8 

12  12 

38  ]2 

15  0 

10  8 

12  8 

38   0 

15  8 

9  8 

13  0 

38   0 

Total 

275   8 

Guernseys  in  the  Isle  of  Wight. — The  Eev.  W.  A.  Glynn,  of  the  Isle  of 
Wight,  the  well-known  English  breeder,  says  : 

My  Guernseys  are  quite  pure,  and  I  generally  carry  about  30  to  40  head.  I  com- 
menced with  the  breed  twenty  years  ago.  I  register  daily  at  each  milking  the  quan- 
tity of  milk  each  cow  gives,  the  annual  average  yield  being  650  gallons,  or,  taking  a  gal- 
lon as  weighing  10£  pounds,  6,825  pounds ;  but  some  of  the  cows  yield  800  to  900  gallons 
a  year.  Two  gallons,  or  21  pounds,  of  milk  make  1  pound  of  butter.  I  never  make 
cheese,  nor  have  I  weighed  a  live  carcass,  but  the  average  weight  without  head,  skin, 
and  offal,  is  about  740  pounds. 

The  color  of  the  Guernsey  is  lemon  and  white,  and  they  arrive  at  maturity  in  about 
three  years.  The  produce  of  my  cows  is  all  sold  as  milk  in  the  yard  to  a  dairyman 
at  a  shilling  per  gallon.  The  annual  average  return  is  about  £32  10s,  while  the  cost 
is  £15.  They  have  4  pounds  of  decorticated  cake  daily  through  the  year  ;  from  about 
May  1,  to  Christmas  they  run  in  the  fields,  and  the  rest  of  the  year  sleep  in  the  open 
shed  at  night,  and  have  28  pounds  of  mangel  and  12  pounds  of  hay  if  fresh,  the  milk- 
ers in  winter  receiving  an  additional  6  pounds  of  bran.  During  June,  July,  or  Au- 
gust if  the  pastures  are  short  they  get  vetches;  from  October  to  Christmas  cabbage, 
and  mangels  from  Christmas  to  May. 

I  have  bred  with  a  view  to  useful  and  good  dairy  stock,  but  last  year  exhibited 
with  wonderful  success  the  cow  "  Vesta,"  which  was  shown  four  times.  I  won  the 
1st  twice  ;  the  3d,  once,  and  the  reserve,  besides  being  once  very  highly  commended. 
With  another,  which  was  also  shown  four  times,  I  won  the  2d  three  times,  and  was 
very  highly  commended  once ;  also  the  champion  milking  against  23  others  once,  and 
the  first  milking  once.  With  my  bulls  I  have  also  been  very  successful  in  obtaining 
honors.  I  started  with  the  best  blood  I  could  get  in  Guernsey,  and  I  carefully  breed 
for  produce  in  quality  and  quantity.  The  quality  on  analysis  at  the  dairy  show 
gave  the  specific  gravity  as  1.0316;  total  solids  14.25;  fat,  5.54 ;  solids  not  fat,  8.71 ; 
percentage  of  cream  by  volume,  7.5,  and  drew  special  remark  from  the  analyst  as  be- 
ing the  richest  specimen  of  milk. 

I  find  that  the  stock  raised  here  are  far  more  hardy  and  do  far  better  than  when  im- 
ported from  Guernsey.  I  infinitely  prefer  them,  and  only  resort  as  seldom  as  I  can 
to  fresh  blood  from  Guernsey.  I  carefully  select  my  breeding  stock,  and  do  not  force 
them,  but  keep  them  in  good  order.  I  find  no  difficulty  in  finding  purchasers,  and  as 
I  receive  many  applications,  I  place  them  in  a  book  to  be  entertained  in  rotation. 
Many  gentlemen  who  have  acted  as  judges  of  Channel  Island  stock  at  various  shows 
come  to  my  herd  to  purchase.  Our  soil  is  a  medium  loam,  partly  on  gravel  and  partly 
on  clay,  much,  of  which  was  recently  laid  down  to  pasture,  but  is  not  good  for  the  pro- 
duction of  milk.  The  climate  is  good,  I  may  say  more  temperate  than  in  most  parts 
of  England,  the  altitude  being  from  50  to  150  feet  above  the  sea,  near  to  which  we  are. 

Record  of  a  Guernsey  herd  in  Sussex. — Mr.  Nevill  Wyatt,  of  Cuckfield, 
Sussex,  who  has  taken  such  trouble  with  the  Guernsey  Herd-Book,  says: 

I  farm  123  acres  of  poor  soil,  called  the  Weald  of  Sussex,  and  it  is  the  queerest  mix- 
ture of  clay,  sand,  and  gravel,  as  sometimes  in  the  same  field  where  pure  sand  is  quar- 
ried for  building  purposes  there  is  found  some  40  or  50  yards  of  stiff  clay.  The  natural 
soak  is  bad,  as  the  beds  of  clay  bank  back  the  water.  *  The  farm,  however,  now  is  all 


THE    UNITED   KINGDOM. 


127 


tile-drained  3^  feet  in  depth,  but  the  distances  between  the  drains  vary.  The  cow- 
house is  situated  on  the  north  side  of  a  hill,  but  so  high  that  the  sun  shines  on  it  all 
day,  from  the  time  it  rises  till  it  sets.  The  ridge  upon  which  the  farm  is  is  supposed 
to  'be  the  prettiest  but  coldest  spot  between  London  and  Brighton.  As  the  crow  flies, 
I  am  about  12  miles  from  the  sea,  and,  with  a  southwest  gale,  salt  is  often  driven  with 
it,  and  the  windows  thereby  are  streaked  with  the  salt.  I  look  on  the  Guernsey  as  a 
better  animal  all  round  than  the  Jersey.  It  is  hardier,  and  I  have  only  lost  one,  and 
that  through  cancer,  which  it  had  in  the  heart.  The  Guernsey  gives  more  milk,  and 
it  is  equally  rich,  and  when  done  with  sells  for  more  to  the  butcher.  I  sold  at  open 
market,  where  Sussex  and  Shorthorns  are  the  usual  run  of  beast,  a  five-year-old  Guern- 
sey, which  slipped  her  calf  a  fortnight  before,  for  £18.5s.  Jerseys  in  that  case  fetch 
from  £5  to  £9.  I  have  sold  others  at  £  15  to  £  18.  They  do  not  fatten  easily,  but  they 
always  cut  up  far  better  than  they  look;  in  fact,  where  a  Shorthorn  looks  fat  outside, 
a  Guernsey  is  fat  inside. 

My  cattle  are  all  housed  in  a  large,  well-ventilated  cow-shed  from  October  or  No- 
vember, according  to  weather,  till  there  is  a  good  bite  of  grass  in  the  spring.  On 
grass  they  get  per  day  each  about  1  pound  of  decorticated  cotton  cake.  The  year- 
lings run  out  all  winter,  but  have  a  shed  where  they  can  go  to,  and  in  winter-time 
they  get  for  food  oat  straw,  and  from  1-J  to  2  pounds  of  linseed  cake  and  locust  beans 
in  equal  proportions. 

The  cows  are  fed  3  times  a  day.  In  the  morning  and  evening  they  receive  each 
hay  and  straw  (oat)  chaffed  with  pulped  roots,  all  steamed,  with  1  pound  of  mid- 
dlings and  1  pound  of  maize  meal  mixed  with  it,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  day  they 
get  hay  and  straw  chaff  with  pulped  roots,  not  steamed.  In  addition  I  give  them, 
according  to  the  milk  they  are  giving,  from  1  to  4  pounds  of  cake  a  day,  §•  of  decorti- 
cated cake  and  $  linseed,  heifers  with  their  first  calf  only  Laving  linseed.  I  test  the 
milk  from  time  to  time,  and  the  average  of  cream  is  about  15  per  cent. ;  theloweat,  and 
which  only  one  cow  gave,  being  13  per  cent.,  whilst  the  highest  was  18  per  cent.;  but 
15  per  cent.  I  calculate  is  a  fair  average.  I  calve  my  heifers  down  at  any  time  from 
21  months. 

The  fault  I  find  with  Guernseys  is  in  their  bony  and  angular  rump  and  shortness 
from  hip  bones  to  tail.  I  am  trying  to  improve  this,  but  find  it  difficult  to  get  bulls 
to  please  me.  In  addition,  a  great  many  have  the  tail  sticking  up  too  high.  These 
things  are  what  make  a  Guernsey  look  so  thin,  and  it  is  hard  to  cover  these  angulari- 
ties with  flesh.  I  am  in  hopes,  however,  that  I  shall  speedily  improve  these  points, 
as  I  have  a  very  good  bull  of  my  own  breeding,  and  I  shall  put  him  to  his  own  daugh- 
ters and  with  their  progeny  breed  out  again.  I  only  once  tried  a  test  with  regard  to 
butter,  and  that  with  not  nearly  my  best  cow.  She  had  calved6  weeks  before,  and  had 
just  returned  from  a.  show  and  was  not  milking  well,  but  I  wanted  to  make  a  rough 
guess  at  what  a  Guernsey  could  do.  She  made  9f  pounds  of  butter  in  7  days  from  83 
quarts  of  milk.  I  have  only  known  of  one  steer  being  fattened,  but  ho  made  a  nice 
beast,  and  was  sold  when  3£  years  old,  in  the  beginning  of  December,  1883.  He  real- 
ized £23,  and  as  butchers  around  here  are  very  prejudiced,  and  will  only  look  at  Sus- 
sex and  Shorthorns,  I  did  not  consider  it  a  bad  price. 

The  following  are  particulars  of  my  herd  as  submitted : 

| Production  by  quarts.] 


Name. 

January. 

February. 

March. 

T! 
& 

<! 

! 

i-s 

>, 
1 

S 

1 
-1 

September. 

October. 

1 
1 

December. 

3' 

o 
H 

Eosobud   1881  (a^od) 

229 
300 
255 
363 

191 

259 
172 
262 

181 
224 
166 
258 
300 
377 
120 
128 
129 
§350 

183 
197 
191 
29C 
386 
268 
384 
211 

192 
179 
170 
274 
353 
255 
342 
382 

164 
163 
128 
250 
271 
268 
286 
t36 
117 
148 
279 
0300 

87 
153 

28 

277 
36e 

291 
403 

Quarts. 
1,484 
2,620 
1,376 
2,  525 
2,064 
2,600 
2,012 
2,  765 
1,526 
1,210 
],220 
1,  444 
ill  

Rosebud  188^                        

305 

411 

Beckio  heifer 

Top^y  a^ed                         .... 

209 
2CO 
250 
261 
345 
t292 
128 
248 
287 

118 
222 
219 
225 
284 
214 
87 
189 
222 
23 

77 
157 
185 
183 
245 
183 
51 
133 
180 
206 
171 

17 
52 
135 
133 
192 
140 

(dry) 

Sunbeam"  2d  calf 

Sunbeam  3d  calf              ............  .. 

123 

*417 

81 
C4 

171 

148 

17 

12 
148 
147 

Goldbud  2d  calf 

Jean  3d  'calf 

143 
144 

125 
125 

8 

Valentino  1st  calf 

Golden  Leaf  1st  calf    ...           

256 
14 

179 
261 
65 

Cban<Telin<T  1st  calf 

94 
143 

202 
208 

Gift  heifer  l*t  calf  

123 
180 
180 
218 
237 
54 

124 
139 
186 
247 

282 

278 

Bailiffs  daughter  heifer 

Fortune,  heifer  

MODO  heifer 

*15  quarts.       t!3  quarts  a  day.       J9i  quarts  a  day.       §11J  quarts  a  day.       |]  10  quarts  a  day. 


128  CATTLE    AND  DAIRY  'FARMING. 

Notes  on  Guernsey  cattle  by  a  Guernsey  farmer. — Mr.  James  James,  of 
Guernsey,  another  breeder  of  considerable  notoriety,  sends  the  follow- 


UfueriiotJj,  itiiutiiei    uicci 
ing  remarks  upon- them : 


There  can  be  no  more  practical  question  connected  with  laud  than  that  which  has 
reference  to  the  value  of  the  different  breeds  of  cattle  peculiar  to  the  British  isles. 
They  may  be  classified  under  two  heads :  the  beef  producers,  and  those  more  especi- 
ally adapted  for  the  production  of  milk.  To  this  latter  class  my  remarks  have  special 
reference.  Probably  in  no  one  breed  shall  we  find  these  two  qualification 8  more  fully 
combined  than  we  do  in  that  which  is  peculiar  to  the  island  of  Guernsey.  This  and  the 
sister  island  of  Jersey  form  two  of  the  group  known  as  the  Channel  Islands.  They 
have  each  a  breed  peculiar  to  themselves,  which  differ  widely  in  many  essential 
points.  The  Guernsey  is  the  larger  of  the  two  and  very  similar  to  that  bred  in  Al- 
derney,  another  of  the  islands  composing  the  Channel  Islands  group. 

The  Jerseys  for  a  long  time  have  been  designated  as  Alderneys,  but  for  what  rea- 
son I  am  unable  to  explain,  v  This  latter  island  is  under  the  same  government  as 
Guernsey,  has  similar  laws,  and  enjoys  the  same  privileges.  It  is  not  so,  however, 
with  Jersey,  for  in  this  island  the  government  differs.  No  admixture  of  the  Guernsey 
and  Jersey*  breeds  is  permitted.  From  almost  time  immemorial  the  Guernsey  cattle 
have  been  jealously  guarded;  stringent  laws  have  been  passed,  prohibiting  the  im- 
portation of  any  foreign  cattle  for  breeding  purposes,  and  notwithstanding  the  various 
attempts  made'to  repeal  them,  the  royal  court  of  the  island  has  always  confirmed  and 
strengthened  its  former  prohibitions.  Thus  under  no  circumstances  whatever  can 
there  be  any  admixture  of  foreign  blood,  and  the  farmer  can  consequently  boast  of  a 
breed  of  cattle  eminently  pure  and  distinct,  beautiful  in  appearance,  and  surpassed 
by  no  other  in  its  distinguishing  characteristic.  As  regards  its  original  habitat, 
opinions  differ  very  widely  ;  we  may,  however,  reasonably  infer  that  it  had  its  origin 
in  some  part  of  the  French  continent.  It  is  a  matter  of  history  that  the  islands  of 
Jersey  and  Guernsey,  as  far  back  as  the  sixth  century,  were  united  to  the  mainland 
by  a  single  plank. 

*This  breed  of  cattle  has  long  been  famed  for  its  cream  and  butter  producing  quali- 
ties, and  it  is  also  eminently  adapted  for  the  shambles  when,  from  age  or  other  causes 
these  valuable  properties  fail  to  be  profitable.  They  are  exquisitely  delicate  in  form, 
in  color  varying  from  light-red  to  lemon  and  orange-fawn,  occasionally  black,  almost 
all  having  a  considerable  admixture  of  white.  In  individual  cases  it  is  black,  encir- 
cled with  light-colored  hair. 

The  most  approved  points  of  a  Guernsey  may  be  considered  to  be  as  follows:  Head 
small  but  long ;  eyo  bright,  lively,  but  placid  ;  horns  small  and  well  turned  upwards, 
being  fine,  yellow,  and  waxy  at  the  bases;  ears  small  and  thin,  with  fine  thin  hair  and 
a  deep  golden  color  inside;  nostrils  open ;  neck  long  and  slender,  tapering  towards 
the  head ;  shoulders  thin  ;  forequarters  light ;  limbs  delicate ;  back  straight  and 
broad  behind  ;  tail  fine  and  thin,  set  on  at  right-angles  with  the  back ;  hide  thin  and 
mellow  to  touch ;  carcass  deep  and  well  let  down  ;  hindquarters  full  and  large ;  udder 
capacious,  broad,  and  square,  well  in  line  with  belly  and  stretching  well  forward, 
not  fleshy,  silky  with  fine  down  or  hair ;  milk  veins  very  large  and  prominent ;  teats 
largo  and  strutting  outwards  and  well  apart ;  the  general  figure  compact,  wedge- 
shaped  ;  skin  tinged  with  a  deep  orange-yellow  throughout,  especially  marked  inside 
the  pastern  joint.  To  these  essential  points  may  be  added  those  tests  as  shown  by  the 
Guenon  theory,  and  which  when  properly  understood  and  applied  are  most  valuable 
as  indicative  of  milk-producing  properties. 

The  opinion  of  the  Guernsey  farmer  is  much  divided  as  to  what  may  be  considered 
tho  most  approved  points  of  the  male  animal.  Some  prefer  the  bull  which  possesses 
many  of  the  points  as  approved  in  the  female  ;  others,  those  of  tho  more  masculine 
type.  Since  the  superiority  of  the  Guernsey  cow  for  dairy  purposes  is  so  generally 
admitted,  we  must  not,  I  think,  be  guided  so  much  in  our  selection  by  what  may  bo 
the  approved  points  of  excellence  in  the  individual  animal  as  by  a  knowledge  of  his 
parentage,  and  this  knowledge  becomes  of  still  more  importance  when  we  consider 
that  the  male  undoubtedly  acts  the  principal  part  ia  impressing  his  character  upon 
the  offspring. 

Oflate  years  there  has  "been  a  very  marked  improvement  in  the  cattle  throughout 
the  island.  The  breeder  has  become  more  alive  to  the  value  of  his  cattle,  and,  stimu- 
lated by  a  very  large  and  increasing  demand  both  from  England  and  abroad,  he  has 
devoted  increased  care  and  attention  to  the  breeding  and  rearing  of  his  stock.  Where 
careful  and  intelligent  breeding  has  been  pursued,  selecting  fitting  sires  and  dams,  a 
very  marked  and  increasing  excellency  has  been  stamped  upon  the  progeny.  Earlier 
maturity,  increase  of  size,  a  more  fully  developed  lacteal  system,  and  a  stronger  con- 
stitution have  been  the  result,  and  with  perseverance  in  such  a  course  these  essen- 
tials will  become  intensified. 

Two  herd-books  have  been  established,  one  on  the  principle  of  selection  and  the 
other  in  the  form  of  a  register,  admitting  within  its  pages  all  cattle  in  the  island 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  129 

Great  difficulties  must  be  experienced  by  breeders  and  purchasers  whilst  these  two 
registers  are  at  variance  with  one  another;  instead  of  affording  information  and 
assistance,  confusion  and  perplexity  must  be  encountered.  As  a  guide  to  selecting 
sires  and  dams  a  general  register  will  meet  every  requirement ;  the  breeder  will  be 
enabled  to  trace  the  parentage  of  any  animal  he  may  require,  and  to  form  his  own 
judgment  as  to  its  individual  merits. 

The  Guernsey  being  essentially  a  dairy  breed  of  cattle,  it  behooves  the  island  farmer 
to  devote  still  more  attention  to  the  actual  yield  of  milk  and  butter  by  the  individual 
members  of  his  herd.  Experiments  and  trials  tending  to  elucidate  this  matter  have 
been  meager  in  the  extreme,  and  it  is  only  in  a  very  few  cases  that  I  have  been  able 
to  obtain  reliable  information  upon  the  "subject.  On  some  of  the  best  land  in  the 
island  a  number  of  animals  are  still  reared  which  are  a  discredit  to  those  concerned. 
At  our  annual  fairs  or  markets  the  number  of  animals  exhibited  for  sale  are  propor- 
tionately small.  The  cause  why  good  and  desirable  stock  is  scarce  is  partly  to  be 
attributed  to  this  and  partly  to  the  lack  of  knowledge  of  good  breeding. 

Too  little  attention  has  hitherto  been  given  to  the  use  of  good  bulls ;  animals  born 
from  indifferent  parents,  and  not  possessing  a  single  desirable  quality,  have  been 
coupled,  very  much  to  the  detriment  of  the  offspring.  A  good  bull  may  be  used,  but 
the  farmer  makes  the  mistake  of  employing  inferior  females.  The  bull  being  capable 
of  transmitting  to  his  progeny  his  own  peculiar  properties,  and  whatever  excellencies 
he  may  have  inherited  from  his  ancestors  becoming  marked  in  it,  it  will  become  nec- 
essary for  the  breeder  who  seeks  to  improve  his  stock  to  be  careful  to  make  a  choice 
of  such  animals  whose  parents  have  been  endowed  with  those  characteristic  quali- 
ties, and  which  ho  seeks  to  intensify  in  the  offspring.  The  form,  character,  and  de- 
velopment of  the  lacteal  system  of  the  females  is  no  less  important,  and  if  it  is  hoped 
to  arrive  at  success  in  breeding  one  must  follow  out  in  practice  these  essential  prin- 
ciples of  breeding.  By  thus  selecting  our  breeding  stock,  and  by  a  careful  and  gen- 
erous system  of  rearing  the  offspring,  a  very  great  and  marked  improvement  in  this 
valuable  breed  of  dairy  cattle  will  be  the  result. 

(9)  KERRY  CATTLE. 

The  animal  represented  in  the  accompanying  engraving  was,  with 
seven  picked  heifers,  selected  from  the  celebrated  herd  of  the  Knight 
of  Kerry  last  spring.  Like  his  companions,  he  is  jet  black,  the  color  of 
the  purest  strain.  His  height  at  shoulder  is  3  feet  6J  inches  ;  his  girth 
at  same  point,  5  feet  7  inches.  He  carries  balk  for  his  size,  with  shape 
and  symmetry,  and  stands  a  perfect  picture,  a  model  bull  in  miniature, 
showing  all  the  recognized  bovine  points  in  strong  development,  with 
some  that  are  peculiar  to  himself. 

The  qualities  of  the  Kerry  are  as  follows:  (1)  head  rather  small, 
balanced,  and  tapering;  (2)  cheeks  clean 5  (3)  throat  full  and  well  set ; 
(4)  muzzle  fine;  (5)  nostrils  high,  well  placed,  and  rather  open;  (6) 
horns  well  sprung,  smooth,  rather  thick  at  base,  but  gently  tapering, 
and  tipped  with  black ;  (7)  ears  small,  fine,  and  of  a  pink-orange  color 
within ;  (8)  eyes  mild  and  full ;  (0)  neck  straight  and  fine ;  (10)  chest 
deep  and  broad;  (11)  barrel  deep  and  well  hooped;  (12)  ribs  well 
home ;  (13)  back  even  and  straight  from  withers  to  top  of  hip ;  (14) 
back  straight  from  top  of  hips  to  setting  of  tail ;  (15)  tail  long  and  fine; 
(16)  hide  of  good  color,  slight,  loose,  and  covered  with  soft  hair;  (17) 
fore  leg  short  and  straight,  full  above  the  knee,  fine  below  ;  (18)  hind- 
quarters well  filled  up;  (19)  hind  legs  not  too  close  together  and 
squarely  placed ;  (20)  hoofs  small ;  (21)  udder  well  rounded,  full  and 
capacious,  in  line  with  belly  and  well  up  behind ;  (22)  teats  well  placed, 
large,  and  rather  far  apart;  (23)  milk  veins  very  prominent ;  (24)  color, 
rich  black  preferable,  although  there  are  some  very  good  animals  of 
other  colors. 

Although  of  very  small  size,  the  cows  yield  a  large  quantity  of  milk, 
rich  in  cream ;  they  fatten  fairly  easily  upon  even  poor  pasture,  and  are 
certainly  superior  to  all  other  breeds  for  hardiness  and  the  power  of 
subsisting  upon  the  scantiest  herbage.  Mr.  Pierce  Mahony  says : 

I  have  now  a  good  number,  but  most  of  them  are  heifers  with  their  first  calf. 
Notwithstanding  this,  many  of  them  are  giving  from  eight  to  ten  quarts  of  milk  a  day 

H.  Ex.  51 9 


130  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

each,  but  it  is  in  the  quality  of  the  milk  that  they  specially  excel.  I  have  not  as  yet 
tested  the  milk  of  all,  but  among  those  tried  I  have  found  many  to  give  10  per  cent., 
11  per  cent.,  12  per  cent.,  and  13  per  cent,  of  cream,  while  one  has  gone  as  high  .-s  15 
per  cent.  This,  with  an  average  live  weight  of  from  six  to  seven  cwt.,  is,I  think,  a 
satisfactory  result.  An  imported  Alderney,  after  her  fourth  or  fifth  calf,  on  the  same 
pasture,  is  only  giving  seven  quarts  of  milk,  containing  12  per  cent,  of 'cream.  The 
pure  Kerry  is  a  graceful  animal,  with  finely  formed  limbs  and  a  grand  constitution, 
capable,  I  believe,  of  great  development  on  g'ood  land. 

Mr.  Bichard  Barter,  an  extensive  farmer,  breeder,  and  dairy-owner, 
says : 

Having  a  large  dairy,  with  a  few  pure  Jerseys,  and  always  7  or  8  Kerries  through 
the  stock,  I  can  bear  testimony  to  the  great  value  of  the  Kerry  as  a  cow,  in  propor- 
tion to  her  size,  and  the  amount  and  quality  of  food  she  consumes.  Her  points  are  the 
following :  She  yields  a  large  quantity  of  rich  milk,  is  extremely  hardy,  is  easily 
kept,  is,  moreover,  docile,  easily  fatted  when  done  milking,  and  is  moderate  in  price. 
I  know  of  no  cow  which  is  so  suited  to  families  where  only  two  or  three  are  kept,  or  for 
light,  upland  pastures.  I  have  a  large  upland  farm  entirely  stocked  with  them. 

Mr.  A.  J.  Knight,  in  the  following  fact,  supplies,  in  all  likelihood,  the 
reason  which  led  him  to  from  his  herd : 

Last  year  I  had  a  Kerry  cow  given  me,  sent  over  from  Kerry,  where  she  had  been 
much  admired  as  a  perfect  specimen.  This  cow  beat  two  valuable  and  lately  im- 
ported Guernseys  here,  giving  a  larger  quantity  of  equally  rich  milk ;  and,  whereas 
the  Guernseys  looked  poor  and  miserable  during  the  winter,  the  Kerry  was  always  in 
good  condition  and  happy.  All  had  a  mixture,  In  equal  quantities,  of  best  oil  and 
cotton  cake,  at  the  rate  of  5  pounds  of  the  mixture  to  each  cow  per  day. 

Professor  Baldwin,  the  well-known  Irish  agriculturist,  bears  this  tes- 
timony : 

The  Kerry  is  small  in  size,  exceedingly  hardy,  and  can  subsist  on  poor  and  exposed 
pasture.  It  often  bears  a  close  resemblance  in  size,  shape,  and  color  to  the  native 
cattle  of  Wales  and  Brittany.  The  color  preferred  is  black,  with  a  ridge  of  white 
along  the  spine,  and  a  white  streak  along  the  belly.  Cattle  of  true  Kerry  descent  are 
met  with  of  other  colors.  Thus,  I  have  seen  them  brown,  black,  and  white,  and  black 
and  brown.  The  horns  are  fine,  somewhat  long,  and  turned  upwards  at  the  points. 
The  skin  is  soft,  unctuous,  and  of  a  fine  orange  tone,  which  is  visible  about  the  eyes, 
the  ears,  and  the  muzzle.  The  beef  is  tender,  well  marbled,  and  commands  the  high- 
est price  in  the  market.  The  milk  is  peculiarly  rich  and  well  flavored,  and  the  quan- 
tity of  it  yielded,  even  on  hard  fare,  is  so  great  that  the  Kerry  has  been  styled  the 
poor  man's  cow.  Professor  Low  observes,  that  in  milking  properties,  the  Kerry  cow, 
taking  size  into  account,  is  equal  or  superior  to  any  in  the  British  Islands. 

Mr.  James  Eobertson  observes : 

As  Youatt  says,  the  Kerry  may  be  truly  described  as  the  poor  man's  cow,  living  every- 
where, and  the  description  is  thoroughly  accurate.  The  Kerry  will  live  and  thrive  in 
almost  any  climate  and  temperature,  on  the  site  or  summit  of  a  Kerry  Mountain  or  in 
the  poor  undrained  lands  of  the  lowlands.  I  have  made  no  extended  experiments 
and  am  unaware  of  any  having  been  made,  but  my  experience  of  an  average  Kerry 
cow  is  that  she  will  yield  on  an  average  12  quarts  of  milk  per  day,  and  10  to  -11  quarts 
of  milk  will  produce  1  pound  of  butter.  Cheese-making  is  almost  unknown  in  Ireland. 
The  weight  of  the  animals  when  fat  is  from  30  to  36  stone,  of  8  pounds,  and  they 
frequently  run  up  to  40  stone.  My  herd  is  kept  on  prime  old  pasture,  which  has  been 
most  judiciously ''laid  down,"  but  the  part  the  Kerry  plays  prominently  in  the  agri- 
culture of  the  country,  is  that  they  are  bred  by  small  farmers  in  the  Kerry  Mountains, 
where  they  have  a  temperature  and  climate  much  resembling  that  of  the  Welsh  Mount- 
ains, and  are  kept  in  and  about  that  district  until  they  are  from  two  and  a  half  to 
three  years  old,  when  they  are  bought  up  in  the  local  fairs  in  Kerry,  and  elsewhere, 
-'for.  the  richer  lauds  of  surrounding  districts ;  in  fact,  the  popular  idea  is  that  if  land  is 
not  good  enough  to  fatten  Shorthorn  cattle,  it  will  be  occupied  by  Kerries. 

Considering  the  utter  neglect  with  which  the  Kerry  have  been  treated,  no  method 
.whatever  being  followed  by  their  breeding,  it  is  a  wonder  they  arc  not  extinct  long 
ago.  They  are  very  easily  kept.  Two  will  consume  very  little  more  food  than  one 
large  Shorthorn,  and  when  crossed  with  it  make  both  good  dairy  cows  and  butcher's 
beasts.  My  champion  bull,  Busaco,  who  has  never  been  beaten  in  a  show-yard  and 
who  obtained  ten  royal  prizes  (the  one  at  Kilburn  included),' measured  68  inches  in 
girth,  36  inchesln  height,  and  34  inches  from  tail  to  top  of  shoulder.  The  Kerry  cat- 
tle are  extremely  hardy,  not  liable  to  disease,  are  handsome,  docile,  pretty  in  the  park 


THE   UNITED  «  KINGDOM.  131 

or  paddock,  and  excellent  butter-makers.  My  cattle  are  never  housed,  cows  in  milk 
excepted,  and  they  seldom  get  anything  but  grass  and  straw  in  winter.  The  points 
of  the  Kerry  are,  a  small,  neat,  lively  animal,  light  round  frame,  narrow  rumps,  hne 
bone,  limbs  rather  long,  line  small  head,  keen  eye,  white  upstanding  horns,  with  black 
tips.  The  popular  color  is  jet  black,  but  a  few  red  and  brindled  ones  sometimes  ap- 
pear. 

We  are  indebted  to  Mr.  E.  O.  Pringle,  late  editor  of  the  Irish  Farmers' 
Gazette,  for  the  following: 

The  Kerry  cow  is  a  neat,  light-made  animal,  with  fine  and  rather  long  limbs,  fine 
small  head,  lively  eye,  lino  white  horn,  which  in  many  cases  after  projecting  forward 
is  tnrned  or  cocked  backward.  The  rump  is  narrow,  and  the  thigh  light.  The  fash- 
ionable color  is  pure  black  throughout,  but  some  are  black  and  white,  and  others  red. 
The  skin  should  have  a  mellow  touch,  and  be  well  coated  with  hair.  The  Dexter  va- 
riety is  distinguished  from  the  pure  or  true  Kerry  in  having  a  round  plump  body, 
short  and  rather  thick  legs  ;  the  head  is  heavier,  and  wanting  in  that  fineness  which 
marks  the  true  Kerry,  and  the  horns  are  longer,  straighter,  and  coarser.  The  real 
origin  of  the  Dexter  variety  is  not  well  understood,  but  it  is  supposed  to  be  the  result 
of  special  selection.  In  Ireland  the  Kerry  is  much  esteemed  as  suitable  for  small 
villa  farms,  as  the  cows,  although  naturally  active,  are  very  gentle,  and  do  well 
when  tethered  on  confined  bits  of  grass.  They  also  thrive  when  kept  constantly 
honse-fed.  We  have  known  a  Kerry  cow  to  bo  kept  for  five  years  in  a  dark  stable  in 
Dublin  without  irjury  to  her  health.  About  12  quarts  of  milk  daily  is  an  aver- 
age yield  for  a  Kerry  cow  when  she  is  fairly  kept  [this  is  too  much. — T.  L.],  and  we 
have  known  some  cows  to  give  as  much  as  16  quarts  daily  for  a  considerable  time  af- 
ter calvinsr.  The  yield  of  butter  is  1  pound  from  11  quarts  of  milk,  but  we  have 
known  a  higher  percentage  of  butter  obtained. 

Kerry  can  fatten  rapidly  when  required.  This  is  true  when  they  have  been  kept 
as  cows  or  otherwise,  for  a  time  on  fair  pasture,  but  poor  Kerries,  especially  bullocks, 
when  obtained  direct  from  their  native  mountain  grazings,  take  sometime  before  they 
begin  to  show  improvement.  When  once  they  do  begin  to  improve,  their  progress  is 
rapid,  and  when  slaughtered  their  flesh  is  of  the  best  quality,  fine  in  the  grain  and  richly 
flavored.  Their  weight,  when  fat,  is  from  28  to  36  imperial  stone.  Extra-fed  beasts 
will  make  40  stone.  With  a  few  exceptions,  the  breeders  of  Kerry  cattle  have  not 
until  recently  devoted  much  attention  to  the  proper  maintenance  of  the  breed,  and 
the  fact  that  Kerry  cattle  have  survived  the  neglect  with  which  they  have  been 
treated,  without  material  deterioration,  is  strongly  in  their  favor.  The  Knight  of 
Kerry  has  a  herd  of  Kerry  cattle  which  has  been  bred  with  great  care  for  a  long 
period,  and  other  gentlemen  in  that  part  of  Ireland  have  also  devoted  attention  to  the 
subject,  but  the  reputation  of  the  breed  has  been  considerably  enhanced  by  tho  in- 
terest which  has  been  taken  in  it  by  various  gentlemen  residing  in  other  parts  of  Ire- 
land, who  have  taken  up  the  breeding  of  Kerry  cattle,  not  merely  as  a  fancy,  but 
from  the  intrinsic  merits  of  the  breed  as  dairy  stock. 

Mr.  P.  Chesney,  in  giving  the  results  of  very  careful  observation  dur- 
ing his  experience  of  the  Kerry,  says: 

My  cows  were  kept  on  the  same  farm  and  fed  on  the  same  pastures  as  a  number  of 
Ayrshires,  Shorthorns,  and  common  cows,  the  only  difference  in  their  treatment  being 
that  tho  largo  animals  used  to  receive  supplementary  allowances  df  bean-meal,  cake, 
and  other  dainties  which  were  found  at  times  to  be  necessary  for  them.  I  do  .not 
speak  from  memory  as  to  the  facts  I  am  giving,  having  before  me  a  register  of  the 
quantity  of  milk  given  by  each  of  my  cows,  at  that  time  38  in  number,  during  the 
rnoiiths'of  one  spring  and  summer,  as  also  of  the  percentage  of  cream  as  tested  by  the 
factometer.  I  should  observe,  however,  that  the  milk  was  only  measured  and  tested 
once  a  week. 

The  farm  on  which  the  cows  were  kept,  situated  in  county  Cork,  consisted  of  some 
300  acres  of  by  no  means  exceptionally  good  land,  part  of  it  indeed  mountain,  and 
other  parts  reclaimed  bog,  laid  down  in  artificial  grasses.  Of  course  some  fields  were 
devoted  to  meadowiug,  and  we  had  considerable  facilities  for  investigation,  while 
others  produced  grain  and  root  crops,  more  of  the  latter,  however,  than,  the  former. 
One  kind  of  forage  found  especially  useful,  particularly  for  young  stock,  was  French 
furze,  which  turned  a.  piece  of  rough,  stony  ground  into  quite  a  profitable  place. 

Up  to  the  time  of  my  going  to  the  farm  it  had  not  been  the  custom  to  keep  much 
•cattle  there,  and  the  cows,  although  good  ones,  were  of  no  particular  breed.  But  as 
butter  fetched  a  good  price,  especially  when  carefully  made,  and  dairying  was  more 
profitable  in  that  locality  than  other  kinds  of  husbandry,  the  stock  was  soon  largely 
increased  and  Ayrshires  and  Shorthorns  introduced.  At  one  time  we  in  fact  had  as 
many  as  60  milkers  besides  a  considerable  number  of  calves  and  heifers.  Having  » 


132  CATTLE-AND  DAIKY ? FARMING 

strong  suspicion,  however,  contrary  to  the  views  of  our  neighbors,  that  the  little 
black  cows  of  the  adjoining  county  would  prove  quite  as  serviceable  and  much  more 
economical  in  our  circumstances  than  the  larger  breeds,  it  was  resolved  to  give  them 
a  fair  trial,  and  as  we  decided  to  start  with  good  ones  we  made  an  expedition  to  Va- 
lentia  and  after  inspecting  the  herd  of  the  Knight  of  Kerry,  became  the  owners  of 
several  good  specimens  of  his  prize-taking  stock.  But  as  these  of  course  fetched 
somewhat  higher  prices,  wo  also  made  some  purchases  from  the  farmers  about,  in  par- 
ticular that  of  one  little  heifer  which  became  quite  a  celebrity.  It  was  in  autumn  that 
wo  made  our  venture,  and  our  little  favorites  having  been  carefully  driven  home  and 
well  housed  and  attended  to  during  the  winter,  duly  calved  the  ensuing  year,  with 
the  exception  of  one  of  those  bought  from  the  Knight,  which  turned  out  a  stripper, 
almost  all  of  them  being  three  or  four  year  old  heifers,  and  this  their  first  time  of 
calving. 

Besides  these  pure  Kerries  we  also  bought  3  half-breds,  the  result  of  the  cross  be- 
tween the  Kerry  and  the  Shorthorn  which  Mr.  Mahony  so  strongly  condemns,  and  I 
am  bound  to  say  that  better  milkers  for  their  size  it  would  be  difficult  to  find.  One 
of  them,  moreover,  was  quite  a  beauty  and  chosen  on  this  account  by  an  excellent 
judge  who  had  some  difficulty  in  persuading  her  owner  to  part  with  her,  andl  believe 
that  a  "  first  cross"  between  Kerry  and  Shorthorn  parents,  possessing  the  requisite 
qualifications,  produces  a  very  useful  animal  for  a  dairy  farm,  especially  if  it  be  one 
where  the  yield  of  grass  is  not  very  heavy,  or  where  there  is  mountain  grazing ;  for 
these  cows  not  only  give  plenty  of  milk  up  to  an  advanced  age,  but  fatten  more  read- 
ily and  produce  a  larger  amount  of  meat  than  the  pure  Kerry  whenever  it  may  be 
necessary  to  get  them  ready  for  the  butcher. 

The  young  Kerries,  three  or  four  year  olds, with  their  first  calf,  did  not  (any  of  them) 
milk  more  than  7-J  quarts  in  the  day  the  first  year,  but  those  which  were  two  years 
older  gave  12  and  13  quarts,  and  even  as  much  as  18  quarts  soon  after  calving.  A 
four-year-old  half-bred,  however,  gave  10£  quarts.  Now,  as  our  best  Ayrshires, 
large,  heavy  cows,  which  consumed  a  great  deal  more  fodder  than  the  Kerries,  never 
gave  a  greater  yield  than  15  quarts  and  our  heaviest  milker  among  the  Shorthorns 
never  quite  reached  20  quarts,  even  when  receiving  beau-meal  mashes,  &c.,  in  addi- 
tion to  vetches  and  grass,  I  consider  that  the  Kerries  are  decidedly  the  most  profit- 
able, particularly  as  they  are  industrious  little  creatures,  wandering  off  to  find  food 
for  themselves,  and  always  contriving,  if  they  meet  with  any  fair  treatment,  to  keep 
themselves  in  proper  condition. 

A  pure-bred  Kerry,  too,  with  her  sleek  ebon  coat  and  gracefully-shaped  waxy  horns, 
is  a  very  pretty  creature,  and  may  almost  challenge  competition  with  her  beautiful 
dove-colored  sisters  of  the  Pyrenees,  though  I  doubt  whether  she  would  willingly  suf- 
fer herself,  as  they  do,  to  be  trained  to  servile  employments,  and  made  either  to  plow 
and  furrow  or  draw  a  cart  of  hay.  Nor  would  it,  in  point  of  fact,  be  at  all  profitable 
to  employ  cows  in  this  manner  if  we  wanted  them  to  give  plenty  of  milk.  Whether  in 
years  to  come,  peasant  farmers  may  find  it  economical  to  use  cows  in  that  way  is  an- 
other matter.  For  my  part,  I  believe  that  jennets,  especially  in  Ireland,  are  better 
substitutes  for  the  more  expensive  equine  animal. 

As  to  the  cream-producing  qualities  of -my  cows,  I  found  Shorthorns  to  give  the 
lowest  and  common  cows  the  highest  percentage,  Kerries  and  half-bred  Kerries  being 
second  best,  and  Ayrshires  next  to  them  in  this  respect. '  It  is  needless  to  allude  to  a 
fact  which  every  observant  person  who  has  to  deal  with  cows  will  have  noticed,  that 
the  yield  of  cream  often  varies  considerably  with  the.  same  animal  from  one  week  to 
another,  and  that  from  no  appreciable  cause,  when  no  difference  has  been  made  in 
the  feeding,  and  there  has  been  nothing,  so  far  as  one  could  see,  in  the  state  of  the 
cow  herself  to  account  for  it.  Of  course,  too,  the  creamoiucter  is  only  a  test  of  the 
quantity  and  not  of  the  quality  of  the  cream,  and  I  had  no  other  way  of  judging  of 
the  latter,  save  by  its  apparent  richness  or  otherwise,  which  I  used  to  note  down. 

Taking,  then,  these  notes  for  what  they  may  be  worth,  I  find  that  with  one  excep- 
tion, that  of  a  seven-year-old  cow,  the  cream  from  my  Ayrshires  was  remarkably 
poor,  that  of  the  Shorthorns  little  better,  that  of  the  Kerries  took  the  next  place,  and 
that  the  common  cows  gave  the  richest  milk  of  all ;  but  I  am  bound  to  say  that  the 
latter  were  almost  all  aged,  and  none  of  them  less  than  5  years  old,  and  I  have  always 
found  the  milk  of  old  cows  much  richer  than  that  of  young  ones,  although  the  con- 
trary opinion  is,  I  believe,  more  generally  held.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know 
•what  is  the  value  of  the  milk  of  the  Kerry  cow  as  compared  with  that  of  the  Alder- 
ney  or  the  Jersey.  I  imagine  that  on  very  good  pasture  the  Channel  Islands'  cattle 
would  bear  off  the  palm,  but  that  on  poorer  or  on  mountain  land  the  Kerry  would 
win  the  day.  . 

As  to  Dexters  I  can  pronounce  no  opinion.  I  hnd,  indeed,  a  pair  of  these  tiny  crea- 
tures more  as  curiosities  than  for  anything  else.  They  are  comical,  but  have  lio  pre- 
tension to  beauty.  The  Kerry  heifer  before  mentioned  became  quite  renowned  in  a 
certain  northern  locality,  to  which,  much  to  her  own  surprise  probably,  she  found 
herself  transplanted.  She  was  one  of  those  purchased  at  YalenUa,  and  owed  her 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  133 

selection  entirely  to  her  remarkable  appearance.  Looking  out  of  the  -window  at  my 
hotel  one  morning  I  saw  a  collection  of  animals  which  had  been  brought  together  for 
the  inspection  of  the  gentleman,  who,  it  was  to  be  hoped,  would  be  soft  enough  to  buy 
up  anything  that  was  presented  to  him  as  a  "rale  Kerry,"  and  singled  out  from  the 
group,  and  as  it  seemed  in  the  act  of  being  purchased,  was  so  queer  a  specimen,  that, 
running  down  stairs  in  alarm,  and  appearing  on  the  scene  of  action,  I  began  to  re- 
monstrate against  the  transaction.  My  protest,  however,  availed  not.  Cockle,  as 
she  was  soon  appropriately  named  from  having  been  bought  by  the  sea-shore,  was 
selected  for  her  oddity,  and  sent  home  with  the  rest,  being  not  much  to  speak  of  as 
to  body,  but  the  owner  of  a  long  pair  of  wide-spreading  horns  that  might  almost 
have  graced  the  head  of  a  Spanish  cow.  Needless  to  remark,  she  was  received  by 
the  cow-herd  with  littlo  favor,  and  barely  tolerated  about  the  place  as  "master's 
fancy."  By-and-by  heavy  trouble  coming  down  upon  the  occupier  of  that  farm,  a 
change  of  residence  was  resolved  upon  and  most  of  the  live  stock  sold;  but  a  mere 
nothing  being  offered  for  Cockle  when  she  came  to  the  hammer,  she  was  bought  in 
and  removed,  as  I  before  said,  to  the  north,  where,  after  producing  her  second  calf, 
the  despised  Kerry  proved  so  excellent  a  milker,  giving  20  quarts  at  first,  and  never, 
I  believe,  going  below  12  or  14  until  just  running  dry — her  butter  also  being  very 
rich  and  plentiful — that  her  reputation  became  so  great  as  to  cause  her  progeny  to  be 
in  great  request. 

This  of  course  was  all  mere  chance.  With  Kerries,  as  with  all  other  live  stock,  the 
great  thing  is  to  choose  well  and  continue  to  breed  from  the  best  subjects.  The 
breed  is  capable  of  great  development  upon  good  land,  for  we  have  seen  at  Irish  cat- 
tle shows,  Kerry  cows  very  little,  if  at  all,  smaller  than  good-sized  Ayrshires ;  such, 
for  example,  as  some  of  those  bred  by  Mr.  Brady  near  to^Dublin,  and* as  the  meat  or 
the  Kerry  is  considered  by  connoiseurs  to  bo  particularly  good,  it  may  not  be  unde- 
sirable to  take  size  into  consideration,  although  this  is  a  point  that  I  personally  should 
care  littlo  about.  A  really  good  herd  of  KeiTies  would  bo  found,  if  I  mistake  not,  in 
more  ways  than  one,  a  profitable  investment. 

The  first  cross,  however,  between  a  Kerry  and  Shorthorn  is  not  suit- 
able for  a  severe  mountain  climate  and  poor  pasture.  The  more  Short- 
horn blood  that  is  iutroduced  the  better  the  cattle  must  be  cared  for, 
whereas,  if  the  better  care  be  bestowed  on  the  Kerry  breed  the  results 
will  be  more  satisfactory  for  dairy  purposes,  and  ultimately  quite  as 
good  as  regards  increased  size.  The  following  are  the  results  of  some 
experiments  carried,  out  on  the  British  Government's  model  farm  at 
Kingwilliamstown,  and  will  be  read  with  interest.  The  elevation  of 
the  farm  is  about  800  feet,  the  pasture  fine,  the  situation  exposed,  and 
the  climate  moist.  The  experiments  were  conducted  for  the  purpose  of 
ascertaining  the  relative  value  of  Galloway,  Ayrshire,  and  Kerry  cattle 
for  dairy  purposes.  The  conditions,  however,  were  not  quite  equal, 
inasmuch  as  the  Kerry  and  Galloway  cattle  were  heifers  with  their  first 
calf,  whereas  the  Ayrshire  were  with  their  fourth  calf.  The  cows  were 
all  wintered  on  the  farm,  and  from  the  published  report  it  would  appear 
they  had  nothing  but  hay.  The  quantity  consumed  by  each  breed  was 
carefully  noted.  Each  Galloway  consumed  21 J  pounds  a  day,  each 
Ayrshire  24f  pounds  a  day,  and  each  Kerry,  16|  pounds  a  day.  From 
this  it  would  seem  that  the  Kerry  is  easier  fed  than  most  breeds  of  cat- 
tle, and  this  assumption  is  supported  by  the  opinion  of  those  most  con- 
versant with  the  breed. 

As  regards  the  relative  size  of  the  breeds  the  report  states  that  the 
Galloway  cattle  when  fat  would  make  about  6  cwt.,  the  Ayrshire  5cwt. 
to  5J  cwt.,  and  the  Kerry  4  cwt.  The  milk  was  measured  and  manipu- 
lated separately  from  the  time  of  calving  to  the  17th  of  June,  and  as 
regards  quantity,  with  the  following  result:  Each  Galloway  cow  gave 
average  of  6J  quarts  a  day;  each  Ayrshire  gave  an  average  of  9  quarts 
a  day;  and  each  Kerry  gave  an  average  of  7J  quarts  a  day;  the  Kerry  and 
Galloway  giving  these  quantities  after  their  first  calf,  and  the  Ayrshire 
after  their  fourth  calf.  The  same  Ayrshire  cows,  three  years  earlier,  after 
having  had  their  first  calf,  gave  only  7£  quart  a  day  each  ;  that  is, 
only  half  pint  more  than  the  Kerry  cows  under  the  same  conditions  j  so 


134  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

that  if  we  take  the  winter  feeding  as  a  fair  test  of  the  relative  propor- 
tion of  food  required  by  each  breed,  the  Kerry  cattle  gave  a  larger  yield 
of  inilk  for  the  food  consumed  than  either  of  the  other  breeds.  It  was,  how- 
ever, in  the  quality  of  the  milk  that  the  Kerry  cattle  especially  excelled. 
It  took  9J  quarts  of  milk  from  Galloway  cows  to  make  1  pound  of 
butter,  10-J-  quarts  of  milk  from  Ayrshire  cows  to  produce  1  pound  of 
butter,  and  8  J  quarts  of  milk  from  the  Kerry  to  make  the  like  quantity. 
It  would  be  most  interesting  to  obtain  an  accurate  record  of  the  prod- 
uce of  Jersey  and  Kerry  cows  under  similar  circumstances,  but  ad- 
mirers of  Kerry  cattle  could  hardly  expect  their  favorites  to  make  more 
than  a  decent  stand  against  the  Jersey  cattle,  seeing  that  the  latter 
have  been  carefully  selected  for  their  dairy  qualities  for  generations, 
whereas  the  pure  Kerries  have  only  saved  themselves  from  extinction 
by  their  extreme  hardiness  and  power  of  existing  on  the  poorest  moun- 
tain pasture. 

It  is  claimed  for  the  Kerry  that  it  possesses  inherent  merits  of  a  very 
high  order,  and  that  these  merits  are  apparent  in  a  large  percentage  of 
the  individuals  of  the  breed.  By  carefully  selecting  good  annimals,  and 
breeding  from  them  only,  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  breed  can  be  raised 
to  great  prominence.  It  will  always  be  specially  suited  to  light  lands, 
but  when  farther  developed,  it  will  be  found  to  give  a  fair  return  for 
better  feeding. 

(10)  AYRSHIRE  CATTLE. 

History. — The  Ayrshire  breed  of  cattle,  a  race  of  dairy  stock  of  rare 
uniformity  of  stamp  and  character,  have  long  been  in  existence  as  a 
breed  distinguished  from  all  others.  As  their  name  bears,  their  origin 
is  traceable  to  the  county  of  Ayr,  in  Scotland,  but  the  date  of  the  early 
development  of  the  breed  (early  it  must  have  been)  is  uncertain.  Mr. 
Acton,  of  Strathaven,  in  his  report  on  the  county  of  Ayr  in  1812,  refer- 
ring to  the  adage — 

Kyle  for  a  man, 

Carrick  foij  a  coo, 

Cunningham  for  butter  and  cheese, 

And  Galloway  for  woo, 

says  that  it  is  of  unknown  antiquity,  and  certainly  much  older  than  the 
Revolution.  Kyle,  Carrick,  and  Cunningham  correctly  describe  the  feat- 
ures of  the  three  divisions  of  Ayrshire.  Cunningham,  the  northern  dis- 
trict, was  remarkable  for  dairy  farming,  the  stock  consisting  of  the  kind 
long  familiarly  known  as  the  Ayrshire  breed.  The  parish  of  Dunlop  is 
the  principal  one  in  the  northern  district,  and  Colonel  Fullerton,  in  his 
report  on  the  county  of  Ayr,  dated  November,,  1793,  referring  to  the 
Ayrshire  cattle,  says : 

They  were  originally  long  known  as  the  Dunlop  breed,  either  from  the  ancient  fam- 
ily in  Dunlop  Parish  of  that  name,  or  the  parish  itself,  in  which  they  were  first  brought 
to  perfection,  and  where  still  continues  a  greater  attention  to  milk-cows  and  dairies 
than  in  any  other  part  of  Scotland. 

The  antiquity  of  the  breed,  dating  back  many  centuries,  is  thus  clearly 
indicated,  and  not  less  the  fact,  with  which  its  history  has  from  the 
earliest  period  been  associated,  that  attention  in  breeding  has  always 
in  a  peculiar  degree  been  directed  to  those  characteristics  which  indi- 
cate the  qualities  of  producing  milk.  In  this  manner  the  distinctive 
characters  of  the  race  as  being  the  most  noted  class  of  dairy  cattle  has 
been  established.  Attention  in  the  end  of  last  century  was  directed  to 
the  breed  through  the  large  number  of  exhibitions  which  were  formed 
for  the  purposes  of  promoting  and  improving  the  breed.  They  were 


THE    UNITED  -  KINGDOM.  135 

the  first  and  at  the  time  the  only  native  breed  of  stock  in  Scotland 
which  the  National  Agricultural  Society  distinctively  recognized  for 
encouragement  as  breeding  stock  by  the  offer  of  premiums  for  such  at 
that  society's  first  general  show  at  Glasgow  in  the  year  182G. 
nating  in  dairy  districts,  they  have  been  almost  exclusively  bred  for 
dairy  purposes,  but  statistics  show  what  perfection  the  breed  might 
attain  for  the  purposes  of  the  butcher, 

Inthecounties  of  Ayr,  Renfrew,  Wigtown,  Lanark,  Sterling,  Dumbar- 
ton, Bute,  Argyle,  Dumfries,  Kirkcudbright,  and  Perth  they  form  the 
only  class  of  dairy  stock,  but  they  are  sought  after  earnestly  by  dairy- 
men in  all  the  other  counties  of  Scotland,  throughout  England,  and  now 
Mr.  Ferme  has  established  a  large  and  eminently  successful  dairy  of 
them  in  the  very  midst  of  South  London.  They  are  annually  exported 
in  large  numbers  to  Sweden,  Australia,  New  Zealand,  America,  and 
other  countries.  The  dairies  of  them  in  Scotland  range  in  numbers 
from  15  to  100,  but  now  Mr.  Hoggan  has  formed  one  of  300  at  Busby,  6 
miles  from  Glasgow. 

Color.— -The  prevailing  color  is  brown  and  white,  spotted,  flecked,  or 
mixed  with  white,  but  inclining,  as  a  rule,  mostly  to  the  brown.  Many 
breeders  incline  to  the  pure  dark-brown  without  any  white.  In  the 
show  ring  in  recent  years  the  fashionable  and  stylish  color  has  been 
pure  white,  with  splashes  of  brown  on  body,  brown  neck,  brown  on  the 
sides  of  the  head,  and  white  face.  Breeders  aim  at  fine,  thin-skinned 
animals,  soft  and  mellow  to  the  touch*,  with  nice,  long,  silken  hair;  and 
in  obtaining  these  ends  it  has,  in  my  opinion,  been  most  justly  conceived 
that  white-haired  animals  are  most  prone  to  these  qualities.  I  think  the 
prettiest  specimens  of  the  breed  and  the  best  types  are  to  be  found  in 
those  whose  bodies  are  dark  brown  and  have  pure- white  hind  legs,  white- 
udders,  and  white  tail.  These  sorts,  in  my  experience,  have  proved  the 
best  milkers  and  surest  fatteners.  Very  few  dairies  there  are  which 
have  not  a  black  and  white  specimen  of  the  breed.  That  color  is  not 
rare,  and  they  are  always  found  good  milkers. 

Characteristics. — In  my  opinion  the  following  constitute  the  leading 
points  in  the  Ayrsjiires :  Large  nostrils ;  short  head,  from  eyes  down- 
wards; large,  full,  and  lustrous  eyes,  set  well  forward  in  head;  broad 
brow  betwixt  eyes,  gradually  widening  upwards  to  its  full  breadth  be- 
twixt the  horn -roots;  horns  widely  set  apart  and  inclining  entirely  up- 
wards, and  white  with  black  points ;  horns  of  bull  not  so  highly  set  and 
of  fair  thickness ;  neck,  at  the  back  of  the  horns,  level,  and  extending 
straight  back  to  shoulder- bone,  the  back  continuing  in  a  straight  line 
to  tail-root ;  no  dewlap ;  body  round  heart-line  extending  in  a  gradu- 
ally deepening  line  to  the  flank;  shoulder-bone  high  and  thin,  rising 
above  the  blades,  the  blades  being  well  set  and  not  working  when  the 
animal  is  in  motion;  part  of  body  behind  shoulder  level;  back  broad; 
torrs  broad  and  pointed  and  equidistant  betwixt  second  fore  rib  and 
and  tail-root?  ribs  well  sprung  from  backbone  downwards;  calving 
bones  by  no  means  wide;  tail  well  set  in  ;  deep,  well-filled  thighs,  ex- 
tending in  a  straight  line  downwards  and  reclining  low  in  the  body  at 
the  flank ;  whole  body  set  on  short  legs ;  long  hair ;  soft,  mellow  skin ; 
fine  bones;  whole  contour  level ;  body  full  of  substance  and  symmetry; 
animal  sprightly,  with  fine  escutcheon,  and  showing  nobility  and  gran- 
deur of  gait ;  in  cows  the  milk- vessel  should  be  broad  betwixt  hind 
legs,  well  caught  up  to  body,  large  and  level  on  sole  of  vessel  and  ex- 
tending forwards  far  on  to  belly ;  teats  well  and  proportionately  planted. 

Maturity  as  milkers. — The  Ayrshire  cows  are  at  full  maturity  by  produc- 
ing a  calf  the  month  in  which  they  reach  three  years  of  age,  but  many 


136         "CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

breeders,  however,  choose  to  have  their  heifers  in  milk  at  two  years  of 
age.  In  my  experience  this  retards  the  growth  and  full  development  of 
the  animal,  alike  in  size  of  carcass  and  milk-producing  power,  but  not 
to  any  very  great  extent  unless  the  heifer  is  kept  too  long  a-milking. 
The  commercial  average  value  of  calving  cows,  taken  all  the  year  round, 
as  sold  in  markets  and  at  public  sales  for  dairy  purposes  is  about  £21. 
Such  cows  when  done  with  at  the  dairy  fatten  well  on  grain  alone  and 
average  in  live  weight  8J  cwt.  Cows  destined  for  dairy  purposes  are 
never  highly  fed  till  they  are  in  milk— rgrass  alone  in  summer,  and  hay 
or  straw  alone  in  winter.  It  is  considered  that  they  thus  develop  their 
milk- vessels  and  milk  properties  much  better. 

Maturity  as  meat-producers. — Statistics  show  to  what  perfection  the 
breed  might  attain  if  cultivated  for  purely  fattening  purposes.  Mr. 
Lawrence  Drew,  of  Merry  ton,  lately  exposed  and  sold  a  large  number  of 
calves,  ten  months  old  and  then  sucking  their  mothers,  at  from  £18  to 
£25.  I  have  sold  in  Paisley  by  public  auction  a  two-year-old  heifer  to 
the  butcher  at  £30.  Two  oxen  of  the  breed  exhibited  some  years  ago 
by  the  Duke  of  Montrose  gained  the  first  prize  at  the  national  show  as 
the  best  fat  animals.  They  were  aged,  respectively,  five  and  a  half 
and  four  and  a  half  years,  and  being  of  uncommon  weight  were  sold 
to  the  butcher  for  £120.  Two-year-old  oxen  of  the  breed  fatten  well  on 
grass  alone,  without  cake,  and  average  20  stone.  Bulls  reach  their  full 
growth  at  three  years,  and  exhibit^in  a  pre-eminent  degree  when  fed  all 
through  these  years  the  weight  to  which  the  breed  might  attain.  The 
average  live  weight  at  that  period  from  my  experience  is  16  cwt.,  dead 
weight  11  cwt.  At  five  years  of  age  I  had  one  killed  at  York  this  year — 
winner  in  his  class — live  weight  19  cwt.,  dead  weight  13  cwt.  The  bulk 
of  bulls  in  this  country  are  fed  off  and  killed  at  two  years  and  nine 
months.  They  average  in  dead  weight  21  stones. 

Housing  and  handling  Ayrshires. — The  breed  is  an  exceptionally  hardy 
one,  so  far  as  climate  is  concerned,  for  many,  if  not  the  majority,  of 
breeders  allow  their  calves  and  one-year-old  heifers  to  lay  out  all  win- 
ter, merely  sheltered  by  natural  plantations  and  receiving  one  sheaf  of 
straw  or  hay  each  per  day.  For  my  part  I  find  the>do  extremely  well 
in  this  manner  and  start  growing  far  earlier  in  the  spring  than  those 
pampered  in  houses.  All  exhibitors  of  the  breed  contrive,  although 
putting  the  animals  under  roof,  to  have  them  in  open  and  exposed 
houses  so  that  they  may  come  out  well  haired.  Bulls  of  all  ages  are 
generally  kept  in  loose  boxes,  part  of  the  box  only  being  roofed.  Calv- 
ing and  milch-cows  are  always  kept  in  well- ventilated  byres.  The  breed, 
as  a  whole,  is  an  extremely  easily  handled  and  managed  one,  I  might 
almost  say  of  some  intelligence.  At  milking  time,  either  morning  or 
evening,  at  the  appointed  hour  you  find  the  cows  at  the  gate  ready  to  be 
taken  in,  and  even  in  a  byre  of  some  hundreds  a  cow  after  one  week 
never  mistakes  her  stall. 

Feeding  Ayrshires.— M  I  have  said,  young  cattle  are  never  better  than 
when  till  two  and  one-half  years  of  age  they  never  see  a  halter,  giving 
them  milk  for  two  months  as  calves,  then  grass ;  in  winter,  one  turn  per 
day  of  hay  or  straw  laid  down  on  a  clean  bit  of  pasture,  with  probably 
the  addition  of  some  little  oil-cake.  For  show  purposes  I  find  the  best 
feeding  is,  for  both  morning  and  evening,  cut  bog  hay  steeped  with  bran 
and  warm  water,  with  one  handful  of  bean  meal,  and  in  the  middle  of  the 
day  pulped  turnips  or  oil-cake  and  bog  hay.  What  we  aim  at  is  cold  feed- 
ing. They  should  be  given  the  very  smallest  quantity  of  meal  and  oil-cake,, 
^as  they  in  my  experience  tend  to  put  on  flesh  upon  the  neck,  and  thereby 
spoil  the  first  point  in  the  breed,  viz,  a  thin  neck.  I  have  a  year-old  bull 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  137 

just  now,  or  rather  aged  one  year  and  six  months,  He  won  eight  first 
prizes  last  year,  including  the  royal,  and  never  saw  meal  or  oil-cake  till 
January,  1884.  His  first  show  turn  out  this  year  will  be  on  llth  April 
next.  Milch  cows  in  summer  as  a  rule  receive  nothing  for  five  months 
but  grass ;  but  some  very  few  give  them  a  little  bean  meal  at  milking 
time.  In  winter  milch  cows  require  warm  feeding  5  cut  hay  boiled  with 
turnips  and  bean  meal  is  the  most  common. 

Breeding  AyrsUres. — The  great  aim  of  breeders  has  been  to  perfect  the 
race  for  dairy  purposes,  and  that  quite  irrespective  of  size  and  substance 
of  body.  We  have  been  contriving  through  many  years  past  to  breed 
milk  vessels  irrespective  of  bodies.  What  we  want  is  a  broad  milk  ves- 
sel behind,  well  caught  up  to  the  body,  with  long  reach  onto  the  body 
and  level  sole,  with  teats  not  over  large,  well  and  evenly  set  on  milk 
vessels,  and  having  broad  points.  That  is  almost  all  which  has  been 
looked  at  for  a  long  time,  and  really  breeders  have  suffered  considerably. 
Such  animals  have  not  as  a  rule  commercial  value.  Many  now  see  the 
folly  and  are  breeding  large,  substantial  bodies  irrespective  of  milk 
vessel. 

One  consideration  has  militated  against  breeders  being  so  generally 
successful  in  producing  perfective  milk  vessels  in  the  fact  that  the  ani- 
mals are  not  in  milk  till  three  years  of  age,  till  in  fact  they  have  proved 
themselves,  and  then  probably  the  bull  is  dead — an  animal  which  might 
have  been  of  incalculable  service  to  the  herd.  Few  keep  their  bulls,  ex- 
cept for  show  purposes,  over  two  years.  Above  that  age  breeders  con- 
sider they  are  rather  heavy  for  the  cows  and  leave  calves  which  are 
sore  on  the  cows.  The  bulk  prefer  stirks  to  any  other  age  for  their  cows. 
In  my  experience  this  is  wrong.  The  bull  leaves  the  impression,  and 
when  one  gets  a  good  one  keep  to  him.  I  had  one  five  years  old,  and 
as  a  three-year  old  he  bulled  80  cows  and  80  as  a  two-year  old  and  more 
as  a  five-year  old,  and  no  man  living  can  say  he  ever  left  a  bad  one. 
He  was  a  true  strain  himself,  and  hence  the  results.  His  progeny  have 
been  all  the  leading  winners  the  last  few  years  and  will  be  this  year 
again.  We  must  and  will  now  aim  at  breeding  more  for  size  and  sub- 
stance of  body. 

The  Ayrshires  as  milkers. — We  are  not  great  statisticians,  but  the 
dairy  show  in  London  proves  that  for  quantity  and  quality  of  milk  the 
Ayrshire  beats  all  breeds.  Mr.  Ferine,  from  his  Ayrshire  dairy  in  South 
London,  with  animals  bought  in  the  district  of  Paisley,  is  now  almost 
annually  the  winner  of  the  lord  mayor's  cup  for  the  best  dairy  cow  in 
the  show.  That  prize  is  tested  by  quantity  and  quality.  I  have  an 
average  of  a  cow  for  two  years  in  succession  giving  11,100  pounds  of 
milk  per  year,  and  of  12  little  cows  in  the  five  grass  months  of  sum- 
mer giving  480  pounds  of  milk  per  day.  I  should  say  that  in  a  fairly 
good  dairy  the  average  pounds  of  milk  per  year  would  be  10,000  pounds. 
I  have  tested  cows  in  midsummer  and  found  they  gave  12  pounds  per 
week  of  butter,  and  a  fair  average  for  the  year  would  be  400  pounds, 
providing  always  that  good  grass  in  summer  is  given  and  good  feeding 
in  winter. 

Near  populous  places  many  farmers  sell  their  own  milk  and  butter 
from  the  cart.  They  realize  per  cow  about  £21  per  annum  5  and  a  bulk 
of  the  farmers  in  the  district  of  Paisley  let  their  cows  for  the  year  on 
lease.  The  party  who  takes  them  on  a  lease  is  called  a  "Bower,"  and 
is  supplied  with  grass  for  the  cows  in  summer  and  food  in  winter.  He 
milks  the  cow,  supplies  his  own  utensils,  horse  and  cart,  and  pays  on  an. 
average  per  annum  per  cow  £18.  As  I  have  suggested,  statistics  are 
scarce,  and  exact  data  as  to  the  quantities  of  milk  required  to  make  a 


138  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

pound  of  butter  and  a  pound  of  cheese  have  probably  not  been  recorded' 

My  dairy-woman,  however,  tells  me  that  a  fair  average  quantity  of 
milk  to  1  pound  of  butter  would  be  24  pounds,  and  this,  too,  in  the  sum- 
mer months,  when  the  cows  get  nothing  but  grass.  From  a  given 
quantity  of  food  the  Ayrshire  breed  gives  a  greater  quantity  of  butter 
than  any  other,  giving  more  milk  and  retaining  a  far  better  condition 
of  health. 

I  may  also  state  that  the  very  best-fattened  Ayrshire  steer  shows  a 
proportion  of  meat  at  maturity  of  68  to  71  per  cent.  The  Duke  of  Mon- 
trose's  prize  steers  were  said  to  exhibit  80  per  cent.  An  Ayrshire  steer 
is  an  extremely  kindly  feeder,  and  becomes  at  a  period  of  from  twenty- 
four  to  thirty-six  months  superior  beef,  if  well  kept  throughout,  with  a 
live  weight  of  1,100  pounds  to  1,250  pounds.  A  cow  fattens  quicker 
and  to  a  greater  degree  of  perfection  than  any  of  the  rival  breeds  for 
the  dairy.  The  soil  in  Ayrshire,  where  the  breed  was  brought  to  per- 
fection, is  of  a  stiff,  clayey  nature,  exhibiting  throughout  a  substratum 
of  limestone,  coal,  or  iron-stone.  Near  the  coast  it  is  sandy.  In  Ren- 
frewshire the  soil  is  variable,  some  parts  being  of  a  light  nature  with  a 
rocky  bottom,  and  others  being  like  that  where  the  breed  was  perfected, 
of  a  stiff,  clayey  nature.  The  grasses  chiefly  cultivated—nay  solely — 
are  perennial :  rye  grass,  timothy,  and  red  clover. 

The  Ayrshire  cattle  have  never,  like  some  other  breeds,  been  used 
for  draft  purposes.  They  are  too  beautiful  and  profitable  to  be  ap- 
plied to  such  purposes.  A  fact,  and  a  scientific  one,  too,  is  that  the 
milk  of  the  Ayrshire  is  healthier  and  sounder  than  that  of  any  other 
breed,  while  it  keeps  fresh  for  a  longer  period  and  is  more  easily  di- 
gested. 

Experience  of  Ayrshire  breeders. — Mr.  David  Allan,  M.  B.  C.  V.  S., 
who  has  had  considerable  experience  among  Scotch  dairies,  says: 

A  good  Ayrshire  cow  will  give  annually  about  750  gallons  of  milk,  which  will  produce 
about  275  pounds  of  butter  or  550  pounds  of  cheese.  It,  however,  does  not  arrive  at  ma- 
turity for  full  milking  until  five  years,  although  three  years  is  reckoned  to  be  the  age. 
When  at  maturity  at  that  age  (three  years),  the  live  weight  of  a  good  heifer  is  about  11 
cwt.  and  the  dead  weight  of  flesh  about  5£  to  6  cwt.,  to  which,  in  the  case  of  a  bull  or 
ox,  add  a  fifth.  The  soil  is  mostly  of  a  light  red  marl  on  limestone  or  sandstone. 
The  grasses  that  are  cultivated  are  chielly  rye  grass,  timothy,  and  the  different 
clovers.  I  do  not  know  of  any  Ayrshires  being  used  for  the  purposes  of  draft.  The 
system  of  feeding  these  cattle  is,  cooked  food  in  winter,  such  as  chaff,  turnips,  beau 
meal,  draff,  and  cabbage,  and  grass  in  summer  for  milch  cows.  Feeding  stock  have 
turnips  and  oil-cake  along  with  hay.  With  regard  to  housing,  the  young  cattle  go 
loose,  whilst  the  feeding  and  milch  cows  are  tied  up.  We  visited  a  dairy  of  300  Ayr- 
shires  in  Mr.  Allan's  district.  The  work  was  all  done  by  girls.  The  milk  is  sent  to 
Glasgow.  The  food  Is  mixed  in  coppers  and  given  hot  in  winter — grains,  chaff,  and 
roots.  They  yield  about  10  quarts  a  head ;  breed  tolerably  well.  The  country  is 
bleak  and  cold ;  soil  heavy.  Size  and  other  particulars  as  shown  above. 

Another  writer,  in  referring  to  the  Ayrshire,  says : 

Ayrshire  cows,  from  five  to  seven  years  old,  which  are  full  fed  in  town  and  surburban 
dairies,  are  almost  invariably  fat  after  being  milked  and  fed  from  nine  to  twelve 
months.  They,  however,  are  not  in  such  forward  condition  as  Shorthorns  would  be 
under  similar  treatment,  yet  for  the  same  quantity  of  food  put  through  the  bodies  of 
a  certain  number  of  animals  of  a  given  value  no  breed  will  produce  the  ,<?aine  amount 
of  milk  as  the  Ayrshires.  There  is,  however,  this  drawback,  and  it  is  agreat  one  from 
atown  or  suburban  dairy-farmer's  point  of  view,  viz,  that  if  the  cows  are  bought  at  the 
calving  and  sold  fat  when  dry,  they  seldom  make  as  much  as  fat  beasts  as  they  did  as 
calvers ;  whereas  with  the  Shorthorn  as  much,  if  not  more,  is  made.  What  money 
value,  however,  which  the  Ayrshire  lacks  as  a  butcher's  beast  it  makes  up  in  milk. 
Under  all  other  circumstances  where  the  cows  are  not  sold  as  fat,  after  a  year's  use, 
but  kept  on  for  the  dairy  for  a  number  of  years,  the  position  of  matters  is  completely 
changed,  for  the  loss  which  might  be  incurred  between  the  buying  price  as  a  calve r 
and  the  selling  price  as  a  fat  beast  is  spread  over  several  years  instead  of  being 
borne  by  one. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  139 

The  Ayrshire  is,  moreover,  far  more  hardy  and  will  thrive  under  circumstances 
where  the  Shorthorn  would  perish.  This  is  well  illustrated  by  the  immense  drafts 
of  Ayrshires  which  have  gone  within  the  last  few  years  to  Sweden,  Norway,  and  Fin- 
larxl,  and  from  personal  intercourse  with  natives  of  these  countries  I  find  their  idea 
oftho  Shorthorn  as  a  dairy  cow  is  low  compared  with  the  Ayrshire.  I  annually  pass 
a  considerable  number  of  both  through  my  hands,  and  have  como  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  milking  qualities  are  more  regularly  developed  in  the  Ayrshire  than  the 
Shorthorn.  Some  Shorthorns  are  as  good  milkers  as  any  Ayrshire  could  he,  but  they 
are  extremely  few,  whereas  it  is  the  few  Ayrshires  that  are  not  milkers  and  the  many 
that  are.  Both  breeds,  however,  I  think,  might  be  greatly  improved  as  general  dairy 
cows  by  judicious  admixture  of  the  good  qualities  of  both.  For  milking  and  feeding 
I  certainly  prefer  a  cross  by  the  Shorthorn  bull  with  the  Ayrshire  cow  to  the  pure 
breed  of  either,  simply  because  it  generally  milks  equal  to  the  Ayrshire  and  better 
than  the  Shorthorn,  and  feeds  equal  to  the  Shorthorn  and  bettor  than  the  Ayrshire. 
In  carrying  this  out  in  practice,  I  generally  buy  Ayrshire  cows  and  put  them  to  a 
pure  Shorthorn  bull,  keeping  the  cross  female  calves  for  my  own  stock  and  selling 
the  males  in  the  feeding  districts,  where  they  bring  a  price  equal  to  that  of  any 
other.  By  this  means  I  consider  I  make  the  most  out  of  the  good  qualities  of  both. 

(11)  ABERDEEN  OR  ANGUS  POLL. 
Mr.  Clement  Stephenson,  well  known  as  a  large  prize  taker,  says : 

Having  for  many  years  been  engaged  in  a'large  veterinary  practice,  with  special 
opportunities  for  forming  an  opinion  on  the  merits  of  the  different  breeds  of  cattle 
from  a  professional  point  of  view,  and  having  for  the  last  eleven  years  been  a  farmer 
and  feeder  of  stock,  I  believe  this  breed  of  cattle  stands  pre-eminently  forward  both 
to-the  farmer  and  the  butcher  as  being  hardy  and  healthy,  a  good  milker,  both  in 
quantity  and  quality,  easily  fed,  a  good  beef  producer,  coming  early  to  maturity,  and 
highly  prized  by  butchers. 

Having  devoted  considerable  attention  to  feeding  cattle,  both  for  market  and  show 
purposes,  I  was  often  struck  with  the  excellent  specimens  of  the  Aberdeen  cattle  I 
saw,  and  I  resolved  to  give  them  a  ferial.  In  the  spring  of  1877  I  bought  a  young 
heifer  of  the  breed  in  Buchan,  Aberdeenshire,  and,  although  only  in  ordinary  condi- 
tion when  purchased,  she  improved  so  rapidly  that,  at  Newcastle  fat  stock  show,  De- 
cember, 1877,  she  took  first  prize  in  a  class  for  heifers  of  any  ago ;  and,  at  the  Smithfield 
show,  1878,  she  obtained  first  prize  in  her  class  and  was  reserve  number  for  the  Scotch 
cup.  A  second  heifer,  which  I  bought  from  the  same  breeder,  took  a  similar  position 
in  the  Northumberland  and  Smithfield  shows  of  1830.  In  September,  1880,  I  bought 
two  yearling  Polled  steers  from  Mr.  Bruce,  Mid  Clova,  and  with  one  of  these  sent  out 
to  show  on  November  14,  1881,  when  only  two  years  eight  months  and  nine  days  old, 
weighing  19£  cwts.,  I  gained  first  prize  at  Norwich;  first  at  Leeds;  second  at  Bir- 
mingham, in  class  for  steers  not  exceeding  four  years  of  age ;  and  second  at  Smithfield 
to  Sir  W.  G.  Cumming's  champion  ox.  With  the  other  steer,  I  obtained  first  at  York 
and  second  at  Hull.  The  progress  these  pure  Polls  made  in  weight  and  the  high  price 
they  sold  for,  in  comparison  with  specimens  of  other  breeds  I  was  feeding  and  show- 
ing, convinced  me  that  they  possessed  all  the  good  qualities  the  late  Mr.  McCombie 
claimed  for  the  breed. 

In  my  first  season,  when  I  had  pedigree  Polled  cows,  I  was  much  struck  with  their 
aptitude  to  fatten.  They  were  grazing  in  the  same  fields  with  other  well-bred  colored 
cows,  all  were  suckling  calves,  and  while  the  blacks  were  full  of  flesh  and  in  splendid 
condition  their  fellows  were  so  lean  that  I  had  to  instruct  my  bailiff  to  give  them  a 
liberal  supply  of  cake.  The  more  I  see  of  this  breed  of  cattle  the  more  I  am  con- 
vinced of  their  great  value.  They  are,  it  is  well  known,  able  to  live  and  look  well 
on  a  poorer  class  of  land  than  many  other  breeds,  and  yet  they  repay,  in  a  very 
marked  degree,  any  attention  they  may  receive  either  by  putting  them  on  good  land 
or  giving  them  extra  feeding. 

There  is  another  and  most  valuable  advantage  these  cattle  possess,  namely,  their 
remarkable  freedom  from  tubercular  disease— a  disease  that  has  caused  great  loss  and 
made  sad  havoc  in  many  a  herd,  and  a  disease,  the  importance  of  which  in  a  medical 
point  of  view  (viz,  its  communicability  to  man),  is  now  attracting  much  attention. 
Of  course  I  cannot  assert  that  it  has  never  been  known  or  seen  in  this  breed  of  cattle ; 
but  this  I  can  say,  that  although  I  have  had  special  opportunities  for  research,  and 
have  examined  great  numbers  of  cattle,  both  alive  andjpost  mortem,  I  hav^  never  yet 
seen  a  trace  of  it  in  this  breed. 

Mr.  Lyell,  of  Dundee,  says : 

The  now  celebrated  Polled,  or  Hornless,  cattle  of  Forfarshire,  long  familiarly  known 
as  Angus  Doddies,  were  probably  originally  introduced  into  Scotland  from  Norway. 
They  were  formerly  known  in  the  neighborhood  of  Dundee  as  Humble  Cattle,  a  name 


140  CATTLE  AND  DAISY  FARMING. 

synonymous  with  that  used  in  Aberdeenshire,  where  a  somewhat  similar  breed  were 
called  Bucan  Hnmlies.  According  to  Mr.  Bernt  Petterson, Norwegian  consul  at  Dundee, 
Polled  cattle  are  very  common  in  the  southern  parts  of  Norway,  while  in  Tronso, 
within  the  Arctic  Circle,  they  also  exist  in  considerable  numbers,  as  I  have  been  in- 
formed by  Mr.  John  Neish,  who  was  there  in  1879. 

Iceland  has  also  a  breed  of  Polled  cattle,  noticed  by  Dr.  Uno  Von  Troil  in  1772.  He 
said  that  in  his  time  the  country  was  well  provided  with  cattle,  which  were  generally 
without  horns,  and  that  their  beeves  were  not  large  but  very  fat  and  good.  It  had 
then  been  reported  by  some,  though  without  foundation,  that  there  were  none  of  them 
with  horns,  but  it  was  more  true  to  say  that  such  were  seldom  kept.  Mr,  Neish,  who 
was  in  Iceland  in  the  summer  of  1881,  says  that  the  cattle  there  still  agree  with  this 
description.  It  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  both  the  Icelandic  and  Scotch  breeds 
were  originally  derived  from  the  Norwegian ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  the  same  natural  law  of  variation  that  produced  hornless  cattle  in  Nor- 
way, or  where  the  Norwegian  breed  originated,  could  act  on  any  breed.  In  addition 
to  the  Angus  and  Bucban  Polls,  now  to  some  extent  intermixed  in  all  the  best  herds, 
there  are  two  other  British  breeds  of  Polled  cattle,  viz,  the  Galloway,  in  the  south  of 
of  Scotland,  and  the  Norfolk  and  Suffolk  Red  Polls.  The  Galloway  had  enough  re- 
semblance to  the  Angus  breed  to  have  been  included  with  it  in  the  early  volumes  of 
'the  Polled  Herd-Book,  but  each  has  now  a  herd-book  of  its  own.  The  Norfolk  and 
Suffolk  breed  is  said  to  have  originated  ohielly  from  a  mixture  of  Scotch  Polls  with 
the  Old  Horned  breed  of  cattle  of  these  counties. 

Coming  to  historical  evidence  of  cattle  breeding  in  Angus,  the  earliest  I  know  of  is 
that  contained  in  Ochterlony's  description  of  the  shire  in  1684-'85.  He  says : 

"Great  abundance  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  horses,  especially  the  brae  (hill)  country,  who 
have  great  breeds  of  cattle;  and  in  all  the  laigh  (low)  country  for  the  most  part, 
except  in  some  few  places  where  they  are  short  of  grass,  all  breed  as  many  as  suffi- 
ciently serve  themselves,  but  the  chief  breeds  in  the  sliyre  are  the  Earls  of  Strathinore, 
Southesk,  Panmure,  and  Edzell,  Powrie,  Balnamoono,  both  for  horses  and  cattle. 

"Both  these  parishes,  Kirmaird  and  Faruell,  belong  entirely  to  the  Earl  of  Sonthesk, 
wherein  are  ane  excellent  breed  of  horse,  cattle,  and  sheep. 

And,  when  writing  of  the  Earl  of  Panmure, he  says: 

"Ho  hath  at  Panmure  a  most  excellent  breed  of  horse  and  cattle. " 

Thus  there  is  evidence  that  cattle  were  carefully  bred  in  Angus  two  hundred  years 
ago,  and  although  it  cannot  bo  ascertained  from  any  record  at  my  disposal  that  these 
excellent  breeds  were  polled  or  dodded,  it  is  probable  from  the  sequel  that  they  were 
so;  at  least,  those  who  have  asserted  that  no  particular  attention  was  given  to  cattle 
breeding  in  Angus  before  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  are  certainly  wrong. 

The  late  Mr.  William  Fullerton,  whose  name  will  be  always  associated  with  the 
improved  breed  of  Angus  cattle,  left  a  report  on  the  subject,  in  which  ho  says  that  the 
Lord  Panmure  who  succeeded  to  the  estates  in  1787,  in  his  sixteenth  year,  was  the  lirst 
to  try  to  improve  the  Polled  cattle  of  the  county,  and  that  he  always  showed  much 
favor  for  them,  even  during  his  minority.  Ho  tried  the  experiment  of  crossing  the 
Galloway  and  Angus  cattle,  but  the  result  was  unsatisfactory,  and  this  line  of  breed- 
ing was  at  once  abandoned.  He  afterwards  was  successful  in  his  efforts  in  another 
direction,  but  in  the  mean  time  the  late  Mr.  Hugh  Watson,  of  Keillor,  on  entering 
that  farm,  in  1808,  at  once  began  a  systematic  experiment  of  the  Angus  Doddies  in 
which  he  was  so  eminently  successful  that  his  name  is  now  regarded  as  the  chief.one 
in  connection  with  pedigree  stock  of  this  variety.  His  father,  who  had  bred  these 
cattle  before  him,  gave  him  six  of  his  best  and  blackest  cows  and  a  bull  on  entering 
Keillor,  which  he  soon  afterwards  increased  by  the  purchase  often  heifers  and  a  bull 
at  Trinity  Market,  Brechin.  These  heifers  came  from  the  parish  of  Farnell,  where  the 
Earl  of  Southesk  had  an  excellent  breed  of  cattle  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
years  previously,  and  the  bull  was  from  Scryne,  near  Arbroath.  From  this  stock  Mr. 
Watson  produced  the  Angus  Doddies,  which  made  his  name  famous  throughout  the 
country. 

The  improved  Angus  cattle  had  reached  such  a  degree  of  perfection  in  1848,  that 
the  judges  of  the  Highland  and  Agricultural  Society's  shosv  held  that  year  at  Edin- 
burgh expressed  the  opinion  that  "the  highly  improved  portion  of  this  much  famed 
breed  is  not  surpassed  by  any  other  description  of  cattje,  in  the  equal  way  in  which 
the  fat  is  mixed  and  diffused  over  every  part  of  the  animal,  or  in  yieldiuo-  to  the 
butcher  a  greater  quantity  of  prime  meat  in  proportion  to  the  weight  of  the  carcass  " 

In  conclusion,  I  may  say  that  I  think  it  a  great  mistake  to  confine  them  to  one 
joloi— black  They  were  formerly  of  many  colors  besides,  such  as  black  with  brown 
muzzles  and1  brown  streaked  backs,  red,  yellow,  and  brindled.  Long  as  they  have 
been  bred  to  black,  they  still  throw  reds  and  yellows,  which  are  discarded  as  unfash- 
ionable, while,  as  every  breeder  of  domestic  animals  knows,  off-colored  and  mis- 
marked  produce  is  often  the  best  in  other  respects.  Varietv  of  color  is  pleasing  to  the 
eye,  and  if  the  ignorant  idea  that  red  and  yellow  Polls  show  impurity  of  blood  were 
got  rid  of,  herds  mixed  in  color  would  soon  be  common  and  admired. 


THE    UNITED    KINGD OM.  141 

It  is  claimed,  says  James  Macdonald,  that  the  northern  Polls  surpass  all  other  racea 
of  cattle  in  the  production  of  beef.  Oil  that  point  there  is,  of  course,  considerable 
difference  of  opinion,  for  at  the  present  day,  when  the  beef-producing  properties  of 
our  other  leading  breeds,  notably  the  Shorthorn  and  Hereford,  have  been  developed 
to  so  high  a  degree,  it  could  not  be  expected  that,  with  anything  like  unanimity,  any 
one  breed  would  be  accorded  the  premier  position.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the  Polled 
Aberdeen  or  Angus  breed  may,  perhaps,  be  said  to  be  inferior  to  none  as  all-round  beoi- 
cattle,  and  superior  to  all  others  in  some  respects.  The  brilliant  and  unequaled 
position  it  has  latterly  taken,  alike  in  the  show  yard  and  market  place,  sufficiently 
establishes  its  claim  to  that  description.  It  may  be  noted  that  at  the  Paris  Exhibi- 
tion in  1878  it  carried  "off  every  single  honor  for  which  it  was  entitled  to  compete,  in- 
cluding the  £  100  prize  for  the  best  group  of  beef  producing  cattle  in  the  exhibition,  and 
that  in  British  show  yards,  both  as  fat  stock  and  breeding,  it  has  attained  to  a  lead- 
ing position.  In  a  strictly  butcher's  point  of  view,  it  has  seldom  to  yield  to  any  other 
race  of  cattle.  The  superiority  over  most  other  breeds,  for  the  butcher's  purpose,  lies 
mainly  in  the  excellent  quality  of  beef,  and  in  the  high  percentage  of  dead  meat  to 
live  weight.  As  a  rule,  the  beef  of  the  northern  Polls  is  very  well  mixed,  and  contains  a 
greater  proportion  of  compact,  lincly-grained  flesh,  and  less  soft,  coarse,  fat  than  most 
other  kinds  of  beef.  Inside,  the  carcass  is  usually  well  lined  with  fat  of  the  finest 
quality,  while  in  the  density  and  quality  of  the  carcass  itself  the  breed  may  fairly 
enough  claim  the  premier  posit  ion  among  all  our  leading  breeds  of  cattle.  Some  place 
the  small  Devon  breed  alongside,  if  not  even  before  it,  in  this  respect;  but  with  that 
exception,  probably,  no  other  breed  in  the  British  isles  will,  on  an  average,  yield  so 
high  a  percentage  of  dead  meat  to  live  weight.  In  butcher's  phraseology  it  "dies" 
well  and  "euts  up"  admirably.  In  all  the  leading  fat-stock  markets  in  the  coun- 
try the  breed  is  held  in  high  estimation,  and  generally  commands  the  highest  prices, 
in  fact,  usually  a  higher  price  in  comparison  to  its  size  and  live  weight  than  any  of 
the  other  leading  breeds.  This  is  especially  the  case  at  the  great  Sinithfield  Christ- 
mas market  in  London,  where  the  plump  compact  Polls  from  the  north  never  fail  to 
find  a  ready  sale  at  the  highest  quotations. 

The  Aberdeen  Poll  is  not  a  milking  breed,  being  especially  cultivated  for  beef,  and 
it  has  been  found  impossible  to  obtain  figures  with  any  degree  of  accuracy  showing 
the  quantity  of  milk  given  per  cow,  or  the  butter  and  cheese  value  of  the  milk.  We 
cannot  indeed  hear  of  a  single  case  in  which  a  more  than  ordinary  dairy  is  composed 
of  this  race.  With  regard  to  size  and  weight  for  age,  a  few  figures  from  the  last 
Sinithfield  show  will  be  found  a  sufficient  guide.  The  first-prize  steer  at  the  age  of 
two  years  ten  months  weighed  16£  cwt.,  and  second-prize  at  same  age  16  cwt.  The 
first-prize  steer  at  three  years  eight  months  weighed  21  cwt.,  and  the  second,  at  three 
years  six  months,  18£  cwt.  The  first-prize  heifer  at  two  years  eight  months  was  17^ 
cwt.  The  Birmingham  show  figures  were  as  follows :  The  first-prize  Polled  steer  at 
the  ago  of  three  years  eight  months  weighed  18J  cwt.,  and  the  second-prize  at  the 
same  age  20£  cwt.  The  first-prize  heifer,  also  of  the  same  age,  weighed  16f  cwt.,  and 
the  second,  two  years  eleven  and  three-fourths  months,  15f  cwt. 

This  race  is  perhaps  the  best  of  all  others  for  crossing  with  the  Shorthorn  ;  indeed, 
the  most  marvelous  specimens  of  cross-breds  shown  at  the  London  and  Birmingham 
shows  are  always  of  this  cross.  At  the  latter  place  .the  first  prize*  steer,  aged  three 
years  seven  months,  weighed  18  cwt.  The  first  prize  steer,  aged  two  years  eleven 
months,  was  17£  cwt.  ;  and  the  second  prize,  two  years  eight  months,  17£  cwt.  The 
first  prize  steer  at  two  years  five  months  weighed  14^  cwt.,  and  the  second  at  on 
year  eight  months  gave  the  marvelous  weight  of  16^  cwt.  At  the  London  show 
one  of  the  prize  cross-bred  steers  at  twenty  months  weighed  13  cwt.  The  first  prize 
steer  at  two  and  three-quarters  years  weighed  17-J,  and  the  second  prize  at  two  years 
eight  months,  17  cwt.  Anotherfirst  prize  at  three  years  eight  and  theee-quarter  months 
weighed  19f  cwt.  The  first  prize  heifer  at  three  years  eight  months,  17f  cwt.  The 
district  in  which  the  race  is  bred  and  fed,  although  not  the  bleakest  in  Scotland,  is  still 
much  exposed ;  and  the  pasture  is  certainly  not  the  best,  but  what  is  missing  in  tho 
field  is  made  up  in  tho  manger,  for  the  northern  farmers  find  it  to  their  advantage  to 
feed  their  cattle  well,  and  especially  upon  cake.  The  race  is  not  used  for  draft  pur- 
poses." 

Mr.  G.  Wilken,  says: 

With  regard  to  the  annual  average  pounds  of  milk  which  the  cows  give,  and  the 
quantity  necessary  for  the  production  of  butter  and  cheese,  no  such  records  are  kept 
in  Scotland.  The  breed  is  a  beef-producing  one,  and  has  been  so  for  many  years. 
There  have  been  noted  instances  of  good  milkers  in  the  Aberdeen-Angus  breed,  but 
for  many  years  Aberdeen  and  Angus  have  been  feeding  districts.  The  late  Earl  of 
Avilie,  of  Cortachy  Castle,  gave  particulars  of  a  newly  calved  Aberdeen-Angus  cow, 
which  gave  14  Scotch  pints  of  milk  per  day  ;  and  of  another,  three  months  after  calv- 
ing, which  gave  12  Scotch  pints.  A  Scotch  pint  is  equal  to  three  English  pints,  so 


142  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

that  these  quantities  give  &§•  gallons  per  day  for  the  newly  calved  cow,  and  4  J  gallons 
per  day  for  the  one  three  months  calved,  equal  at  10^  pounds  to  the  gallon  to  56  and 
47  pounds  of  milk  per  day,  respectively.  With  ordinary  feeding  the  weight  of  cows  at 
maturity  would  vary  from  1,101)  to  1,500  pounds,  the  dead  weight  of  these  being  about 
7  to  9  cwt.  Many  cases  at  Smithfield  exceed  2,000  pounds  live  weight.  Bulls,  if  fed 
well  all  their  lives  (which  they  usually  are),  weigh  from  2,000  to  2,400  pounds  at 
maturity.  With  reference  to  the  age  of  the  cows,  they  have  been  known  to  live  over 
thirty  years,  and  it  is  not  uncommon  to  find  some  of  the  age  of  twenty  years  which 
are  fresh  and  breeding.  The  proportion  of  meat  at  maturity  of  a  fattened  steer  varies 
from  60  pounds  per  100  pounds  of  live  weight,  to  as  high  as  73  pounds  per  100  pounds. 
'The  average  steer  in  the  Aberdeeushire  district  at  two  years  and  nine  or  ten  months, 
whsn  most  of  them  are  sold,  weigh  from  7£  to  10  cwt.,  dead  weight.  The  soil  of  the 
district  is  poor  and  cold,  but  has  been  greatly  improved  by  draining,  liming,  &c., 
and  the  grasses  mostly  cultivated  are  rye-grass,  and  red,  white,  and  alsike  clovers. 
Many  of  the  cattle  are  still  used  for  draft  purposes,  especially  in  plowing  and  break- 
ing up  new  land.  Aberdeenshire  was  mostly  reclaimed  by  the  "twal  oxen  plow,'7 
managed  by  two  men,  "a  plowman  and  a  gansman,"  and  an  old  saying  illustrates 
best  how  farmers  thrived  in  olden  times,  viz : 

"He  that  by  the  plow  wad  thrive 
Maun  either  hand  or  drive." 

That  is,  must  either  hold  the  plow  or  drive  the-  oxen.  The  system  of  feeding 
varies  somewhat  in  different  localities,  but  the  following  is  the  most  common,  viz : 
From  1st  to  10th  May  to  middle  of  October  the  cattle  go  out  on  the  grass  in  inclosed 
fields,  but  feeding-cattle  are  turned  into  the  house  a  month  earlier.  From  the  middle 
of  October  to  May  the  cattle  in  Aberdeen  and  Banifshire  are  generally  tied  up  by  the 
neck.  In  Moray 'and  Inverness,  north  of  Aberdeen,  young  cattle  are  fed  in  covered 
courts.  The  feed,  in  each  case,  turnips  and  oat  straw  only.  In  some  cases  young 
heifers  and  bulls  get  from  1£  to  2  pounds  of  linseed  cake  daily  after  weaning  till  early 
spring.  The  reason  so  little"  is  known  as  to  the  milk-producing  properties  of  the  race 
is  because  the  calves  mostly  all  suckle  their  dams  from  five  to  six  months,  when  the 
cows  are  allowed  to  dry  off. 

(12)  SHETLAND  CATTLE. 

Perhaps  the  least-known  race  of  cattle  in  Great  Britain  is  the  Shet- 
land, which  is  by  no  means  a  large  one,  and  is  almost  entirely  in  the 
hands  of  one  great  nobleman,  the  Marquis  of  Londonderry.  We  are 
unable  to  obtain  an  illustration  of  the  cattle,  but  we  are  indebted  to 
to  Mr.  Brydon,  the  popular  steward  of  the  marquis,  for  the  following 
particulars.  He  says : 

I  am  unable  to  give  statistics  as  to  the  capabilities  in  the  dairy  of  the  Shetland 
cattle,  but  I  know  that  when  well  fed  they  are  good  milkers  and  that  the  milk  is 
rich.  We  use  them  chiefly  for  nursing  calves,  and  wo  cannot  get  cows  of  any  other 
breed  on  which  they  do  so  well.  I  can  give  lots  of  instances  of  this,  but,  at  the  mo- 
ment, I  remember  one  in  particular.  Wo  had  on  the  farm  n  little  Shetland  cow  which 
calved  about  the  1st  of  June,  and  as  she  seemed  to  have  a  lot  of  milk  we  procured  an- 
other calf  and  made  her  nurse  the  pair.  Both  calves  were  sold  by  auction  when 
eleven  months  old,  and  the  pair  realized  £43,  the  purcha-ser  being  a  butcher.  Of 
course  the  cow  had  cake  and  meal  during  the  winter.  The  first  cross  from  a  Shet- 
land by  a  Shorthorn  bull  also  makes  a  very  good  cow. 

The  native  home  of  the  Shetland  cattle  is,  as  might  be  supposed,  the  Shetland 
Isles,  which  are  situated  between  59°  51'  and  CO0  51'  north  latitude,  and  0°  41'  and 
1°  50'  west  longitude.  Tho  rocks  are  all  primary,  gneiss,  granite,  quartz,  and  stone 
slate  being  the  prevailing  formations,  but  in  some  parts  there  is  a  coarse  variety  of 
the  old  red  sandstone  and  conglomeration.  A  great  part  of  the  surface  is  covered  with 

Eeat,  though  there  are  generally  green  patches  close  to  the  sea.    The  hills  are  not 
igh,  only  one  in  the  whole  group  measuring  1,400  «feet»    The  temperature  is  higher 
in  winter  and  lower  in  summer  than  that  of  the  Scottish  mainland,  the  mean  being 
stated  as  45°  5'.     Grass  grows  luxuriantly  for  a  short  time  in  summer,  but  in  winter 
and  spring,  the  islands  present  a  bare,  barren  appearance. 

The  cattle  have  a  hard  life  of  it  through,  and  as  calves  they  scarcely  get  any 
milk,  that  being  kept  for  other  purposes.  In  spring  they  are  so  reduced  withpoverty 
that  any  one  not  acquainted  with  them  could  hardly  suppose-  it  possible  they  would 
come  round,  and  yet  a  short  time  on  coarse  keep  makes  them  look  fresh  and  well.  1 
have  seen  them  thrive  well  on  pasture  where  other  and  finer-bred  catile  could  not  live. 
As  may  be  expected,  the  treatment  to  which  they  are  subjected  stunts  their  growth, 
but  if  well  fed  when  young  they  become  very  little  less  than  other  breeds. 


THE  UNITED  KINGDOM.  143 

(13)  WEST  HIGHLANDER  *CATTLB. 

As  a  milker,  possibly  the  West  Highlander  cow  has  not  much  of  a 
reputation,  yet  whatever  milk  she  gives  is  exceedingly  rich,  and  the 
men  who  are  reared  in  a  Highland  glen,  on  good  West  Highland  cream 
and  some  oatmeal  bannocks,  have  little  indeed  to  complain  about.  As 
to  its  beef,  as  is  well  known,  it  is  the  best  to  be  found  in  the  London 
market,  and  always  commands  as  ready  a  sale  as  the  best  Shorthorns, 
Herefords,  Galloways,  or  Polled.  Though  the  West  Highlanders  thrive 
better  on  their  native  heath,  they  do  very  well  in  the  South,  and  many 
of  their  admirers  have  displaced  the  deer  from  their  parks  and  substi- 
tuted the  shaggy  beast,  thus  revising  to  some  extent  the  present  process 
in  the  Highlands.  They  are  thus  ornamental  as  well  as  useful,  and 
fetch  better  prices  in  the  market  than  would  the  savory  venison.  As 
the  points  of  the  West  Highlanders  have  never  been  laid  down,  it  may 
be  well  to  give  here  the  opinions  of  all  the  noted  breeders,  together  with 
some  slight  history  of  the  most  noted  herds. 

Characteristics  of  West  Highland  cattle. — The  head  should  be  beauti- 
fully proportioned  to  the  rest  of  the  animal  5  the  fine  head  with  a  large 
tuft  of  hair  on  it  5  the  nostrils  full ;  the  eyes  large  and  liquid.  There 
should  be  a  proportionate  breadth  betwixt  the  jaw-bones  behind  to  the 
large  forehead  in  front.  The  horns  should  be  lengthy,  and  showing 
what  is  called  blood  to  the  very  point ;  they  should  come  level  out  of 
the  head,  inclining  forwards  and  upwards  ;  in  the  cow  they  should  rise 
up  with  a  graceful  slope.  Some  breeders  do  not  care  for  the  horns  to 
rise  upwards,  being  of  opinion  that  the  less  rise  there  is  the  better. 
Perfection  in  a  cow's  horns  is  of  two  kinds,  according  to  taste,  but  some 
prefer  them  to  come  out  level  from  the  'head,  with  a  peculiar  back-set 
curve  and  a  wider  sweep.  In  the  bull  the  horn  should  be  decidedly 
strong,  and  what  is  termed  sappy.  Some  are  of  opinion  that  when  the 
horn  droops  suddenly  from  the  crown  to  where  the  upward  curve  com- 
mences it  is  a  sign  of  weak  back.  The  cow's  horns  rise  sooner  from  the 
head  and  are  a  little  longer,  preserving  their  substance  and  rich  color 
to  the  very  tips. 

The  neck  should  in  length  be  proportionate,  clean  below,  and  in  cows 
forming  a  straight  line  from  the  head  to  the  shoulder.  In  point  of  thick- 
ness it  should  be  fully  developed,  and  the  bulls  should  have  a  crest. 
The  shoulder  should  be  thick  and  immensely  filled  out  downwards  from 
the  point  to  the  lower  extremity  of  the  fore-arm. 

The  back,  from  the  very  back  of  the  shoulder,  should  have  a  fully 
rounded  development,  what  judges  call  "plain";  that  is,  a  hollow  be- 
hind the  shoulder,  as  if  you  had  tied  a  string  about  it,  is  exceedingly  ob- 
jectionable. Across  the  hips  there  should  be  great  breadth,  while  from 
the  hips  backwards  the  quarters  should  have  a  very  large  development, 
being  square  betwixt  the  hips  and  the  tail  and  betwixt  the  tail  and  the 
hind  feet.  As  in  the  fore  shoulders,  the  hind  thighs  should  have  an 
immense  development.  The  tail  should  be  thick  and  strong,  with  a  full 
bunch  of  hair  hanging  down  towards  the  ground.  The  bone,  both  in 
the  fore  and  hind  legs,  should  be  thick,  broad,  and  straight;  the  hoofs 
large  and  well  set  on,  and  the  legs  feathered  with  hair.  There  should 
be  great  breadth  betwixt  the  fore  legs,  and  the  animals  should  walk 
with  great  dignity  of  motion;  indeed,  unless  an  animal  possesses  this 
dignified  style  of  carriage,  he  will  have  small  chances  of  winning  prizes 
in  the  show-ling.  The  hair  should  be  long,  with  a  graceful  wave  in  it — 
a  cud  in  it  is  a  decided  fault — and  should  possess  much  bloom.  The 


144  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

lack  of  wave  in  the  hair  is  Considered  to  be  a  great  objection  in  many 
of  the  modern  herds. 

As  a  rule,  the  color  is  black,  but  fashion  now  runs  on  yellows  or  light 
duns  and  on  brindies.  A  well- arranged  herd  should  have  a  mixture  of 
colors,  avoiding  all  those  which  indicate  unhealthy  thrivers.  A  well- 
marked  brindled  bull  is,  however,  all  things  being  equal,  a  difficult  one 
to  beat  at  any  northern  show.  A  modern  prejudice  exists  in  some  quar- 
ters against  Highlanders  being  marked  all  over  with  white  spots.  They 
are  not  considered,  however,  to  be  of  impure  blood,  and  Mr.  Stewart,  of 
Tigh-Duin,  one  of  the  oldest  and  ablest  authorities,  is  of  opinion  they 
were  looked  upon  by  all  breeders  as  marks  of  purity  or  superiority. 
Possibly,  too,  he  thinks  that  when  the  Ayrshires  came  into  the  High- 
lands the  prejudice,  which  is  a  senseless  one,  arose.  As  regards  the 
absence  of  the  wave  in  the  coat  of  modern  show-yard  representatives, 
it  is  held  that  it  is  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  growing  desire  to  make 
Highlanders  grow  big,  and  from  too  kindly  treatment.  The  more  ex- 
posed the  animal  is  the  better  does  his  hair  grow.  The  whole  points  of 
the  animal  have  to  be  considered,  indeed,  in  the  light  that  he  has  to 
make  a  living  in  a  bare  and  storm-exposed  locality  ;  that,  indeed,  he  has 
to  thrive  where  a  Polled  Angus  or  an  Ayrshire  would  starve.  The  ques- 
tion of  thickness  of  skin,  where  tat,  is  one  which  is  not  left  out  of  con- 
sideration ;  as  in  other  animals,  the  sweetest  beef  being,  as  a  rule,  that 
under  the  thinnest  skin.  But  a  West  Highlander  with  too  thin  a  skin 
would  not  thrive  well  on  the  side  of  a  wind-swept  hill. 

Though  the  West  Highlander  is  not  a  good  milker,  she  as  a  rule  al- 
ways gives  enough  and  more  to  suckle  her  calf,  which  is  allowed  to  run 
by  her  side  till  far  on  in  the  autumn,  when  it  is  weaned.  Cows  to  calf 
are  generally  housed  from  the  end  of  November  to  the  middle  of  Janu- 
ary, according  to  the  weather  and  dates  of  calving.  Young  and  yeald 
cattle,  possibly,  do  better  when  wintered  out  with  open  sheds  for  shel- 
ter erected  in  the  fields.  Thousands,  indeed,  in  some  localities  are  never 
housed  at  all,  unless  snow  is  deep,  and  even  then  they  thrive  tolerably 
well  if  a  little  hay  is  given  them,  and  they  have  some  little  shelter  from 
a  bit  of  woodland  or  the  projecting  side  of  some  hill.  When  first  put 
in  in  May  they  are  fed  upon  straw  or  the  coarsest  of  the  meadow  hay  ; 
after  calving,  upon  meadow  hay  supplemented  with  turnips.  When  in 
finest  bloom  the  West  Highlander  is  indeed  a  perfect  picture  5  and  that 
is  generally  in  the  three  last  months  of  the  year.  His  coat  of  hair  is 
then  at  its  best,  and  he  looks  every  inch  a  monarch,  prepared  to  fight 
and  wrestle  with  the  north  wind. 

Possibly  on  the  richer  pastures  of  the  Lowlands  he  would  not  look  so 
well.  Still  at  all  times  he  looks  by  far  the  most  noble  of  the  bovine 
race.  For  parks  he  therefore  is  in  good  demand,  and  it  is  possible  that 
he  may  find  a  home  in  every  demesne  where  his  picturesque  appear- 
ance becomes  well  the  woodland  scenery.  No  doubt  in  many  places  of 
the  Highlands  he  has  been  supplanted  by  the  Ayrshire,  Shorthorn, 
and  the  Polled,  but  where  herbage  is  thin  and  scant  and  there  has  to 
be  some  mountaineering  to  get  it,  Donald  Buidhe  and  Duncan  Euadh 
will  hold  their  own.  It  was  thought  by  many  that  the  West  High- 
lander would  have  well  suited  the  ranches  of  America,  but  what  is 
wanted  there  is  not  animals  to  increase  the  weather-defying  qualities, 
so  to  speak,  but  to  promote  the  tendency  to  make  beef,  the  Texan  stock 
possessing  many  of  the  powers  of  endurance  for  which  the  West  High- 
lander is  noted. 

Noted  herds  of  West  Highland  cattle.— Of  the  most  noted  herds  which 
at  present  are  kept  very  pure  in  the  Highlands  may  be  mentioned  that 
of  Eossie  belonging  to  Lord  Kinnaird.  This  herd  was  formed  four  years 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  145 

ago  on  the  dispersion  of  the  famous  Urlar  herd,  on  tlie  16th  May,  1878, 
by  the  purchase  of  some  of  the  best  of  that  old  blood.  A  much  older 
herd  is  that  of  Poltalloch,  which  was  formed  as  far  back  as  1795,  from 
stock  purchased  at  Castle  Craignish  and  in  the  island  of  Shuna.  The 
annual  sale  of  the  Poltalloch  draft  affords  opportunities  to  breeders 
who  may  wish  to  establish  similar  herds. 

At  Ben  more  there  is  also  a  famous  herd  which  was  formed  in  the 
years  1873  and  1876,  by  selection  from  the  then  famous  herd  of  Mr. 
John  Stewart,  Bochastle,  Callender,  including  the  celebrated  bull  Don- 
achadh  Ban  Nan  Oran  and  the  cow  Phrisiag  2nd.  The  former  won 
the  first  prize  at  the  Highland  Society's  Show  at  Edinburgh  in  1877, 
and  also  first  prize  at  the  great  show  in  Paris.  The  cow  mentioned 
also  won  first  honors  wherever  exhibited,  and  her  victories  include  a 
first  prize  at  Paris.  While  at  the  latter  exhibition  the  famous  bull  was 
admired  by  Eosa  Bonheur,  who  subsequently  painted  his  portrait  for 
Mr.  Duncan. 

The  Breadalbane  herd  which  was  dispersed  in  1882,  on  the  death  of 
the  late  marquis,  was  reformed  under  the  late  earl  in  1871,  with  pur- 
chase of  some  stock  at  the  Urlar  sale  mentioned,  Urlar  being  indeed 
close  to  Taymotith  Castle.  Some  of  the  old  Breadalbane  cows  were 
also  secured  by  Mr.  Dunn,  his  lordship's  manager  at  Kenmore  Mains, 
also  the  second  prize  Higland  and  agricultural  bull  Ossian,  bred  by 
the  Duke  of  Athole.  Since  then  tho%  herd  has  been  increased  by  sev- 
eral selections  from  the  Bochastle  and  Poltalloch  herds,  the  present 
earl  taking  an  interest  in  it. 

Amongst  other  noted  herds  are  those  of  the  Duke  of  Athole,  Lord 
Dunmore,  Mr.  Stewart,  Dtmtulm.  Mr.  Stewart,  of  Tigh  Duin,  Killin, 
is  one  of  an  enthusiastic  family  of  breeders  who  have  stuck  to  the  West 
Highlander  for  several  generations.  Indeed  the  history  of  the  West 
Highlander  is  interwoven  with  that  of  the  family. 

That  the  West  Highlander  has  a  future  before  it  many  good  judges 
think.  Its  beef  is  the  richest  in  the  market,  and  in  these  days  of  quan- 
tity, quality  is  certainly  worthy  of  consideration.  A  herd  book  is  being 
got  up  for  them  by  Lord  Duumore,  and,  though  its  Gaelic  may  be  al- 
most untranslatable,  in  the  long  run  it  will  spread  its  popularity.  The 
West  Highlander,  grand  as  he  is,  does  not  yet  suit  the  views  of  the 
butcher,  and  Mr.  Dykes  admits  that  although  this  is  the  case  he  is  being 
brought  back  to  his  ancient  self  among  Scottish  cattle  nobility,  and  is 
yearly  the  wonder  of  the  Londoner  at  the  annual  Sinithfield  exhibitions. 

Mr.  Drummond  Moray,  of  Blair  Drummond,  Stirling,  a  famous  ex- 
hibiter  of  the  race,  says : 

Highland  cattle  are  not  bred  here,  but  are  bought  in  at  from  eighteen  to  thirty 
months  old  for  the  purpose  of  being  fattened.  Heifers  at  the  age  of  three  and  a  half 
years  will,  with  ordinary  feeding  and  4  pounds  of  cake  per  day  for  the  last  three 
months,  feed  up  to  5  or  5|  cwt.  That  is  the  weight  of  the  carcass  of  beef  after  being 
slaughtered  and  dressed.  Oxen  of  the  same  age  and  fed  in  the  same  way,  with  a  little 
additional  cake  during  the  last  three  or  four  mouths,  will  feed  up  to  fully  7  cwt.  of 
beef.  These  weights  can  bo  attained  at  an  earlier  period  by  giving  better  food  and 
commencing  the  cake  earlier,  or  the  weights  may  be  very  much  increased  by  keeping 
on  the  animals  for  another  year,  but  as  a  rule  it  pays  best  to  fatten  Highland  cattle 
off  the  grass  when  they  are  about  three  and  a  half  years  old.  Many  excellent  ani- 
mals of  this  breed  have  been  fed  here  for  show  purposes,  the  weight  of  which  when 
slaughtered  came  up  to  12  or  13  cwt.  of  beef,  but  these  were  generally  four  and  a  half 
years  old  or  a  month  or  two  more.  The  proportion  of  beef  to  the  live  Weight  of  a  good, 
well-fattened  Highland  ox  is  nearly  two-thirds  of  the  weight.  The  animals  are  hardy, 
and  after  the  first  winter  (when  they  should  be  housed)  they  thrive  in  any  sheltered 
situation,  bnt  when  they  get  into  good  condition  they  should  be  put  into  courts  to 
prevent  the  loss  of  flesh  in  cold  weather.  None  of  this  breed  are  used  for  draft  pur- 
poses in  this  district,  and  I  never  saw  them  so  used  anywhere. 

H.  Ex.  51 10 


146  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Mr.  James  Duncan,  whose  herd  at  Benmore  has  been  already  referred 
to,  gives  us  some  further  information.  He  says  : 

My  Highland  cattle  are  kept  by  me  simply  for  breeding  purposes.  I  do  not  sepa- 
rate the  calves  from  the  cows.  Although  I  cannot  tell  how  much  milk  my  cows  give, 
yet  the  quality  of  it  and  of  that  from  the  Highland  cattle  in  general  is  very  fine. 
Highland  cattle  are  never  under  cover ;  they  are  very  hardy  and  will  live  where  other 
animals  would  starve.  I  have  a  considerable  number  on  the  hills  in  Scotland.  The 
grasses  are  native,  and  in  winter  the  cattle  eat  heather  furze  and  other  bushes.  The 
master  of  Blantyre  has  succeeded  in  working  Highland  cattle ;  and  it  is  a  well  known 
fact  that  they  produce  the  finest  beef.  When  in  America  in  1876  I  advised  some  of 
the  western  farmers  to  give  them  a  trial,  as  in  many  districts  they  would  do  far  better 
than  the  Shorthorn  ;  for  instance,  on  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  in  some  of  the  plains 
they  would  do  very  well,  but  where  there  is  an  abundance  of  fine  grass  it  would  be 
a  mistake,  in  my  opinion,  to  introduce  them.  I  may  mention  that  there  is  only  one 
question  about  the  adaptability  of  Highland  cattle  for  America,  and  that  is  the  ex- 
treme heat  of  summer. 

Sir  John  Swinburne,  an  eminent  owner  of  this  breed,  says,  in  an- 
swer to  a  communication  from  us : 

I  do  not  breed  the  Highland  cattle,  but  buy  them  at  about  twenty- four  to  thirty 
months  old,  at  Falkirk  Trysts,  which  are  held  annually  in  September  and  October. 
Their  native  homes  are  not  cold,  but  constantly  wet  from  rain  and  mist,  and  there  is 
not  much  snow.  Their  long  hair  enables  them  to  remain  out  all  winter,  and  they  will 
thrive,  but  do  not  grow  fat,  on  very  rough  pastures,  and  bear  whatever  cold  there  is 
remarkably  well.  The  age  at  maturity  of  the  West  Highlander  is  about  four  years, 
and  the  live  weight  of  the  cow  at  maturity  is  about  76  stone,  and  that  of  the  bulls 
about  97  stone.  The  proportion  of  meat  at  maturity  of  a  fattened  steer  is  about  two- 
thirds  of  its  live  weight.  I  have  never  hfeard  of  the  West  Highlander  being  used  for 
draft  purposes.  They  are  housed  in  open  boxes  and  fed  and  handled  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  other  cattle. 

The  Earl  of  Seafield  is  one  of  the  large  breeders  of  this  race,  and  we 
consequently  put  a  series  of  questions  to  his  steward,  who  has  kindly 
given  us  the  following  particulars  in  reply : 

With  regard  to  the  annual  average  pounds  of  milk  per  cow,  I  find  the  quantity 
to  be  3,780  pounds. 

A  cow  which  matures  in  four  years  is  11  cwt.  in  weight,  and  6£  feet  in  girth,  whilst  a 
bull  arrives  at  maturity  in  live  years,  weighs  14  cwt.,  and  has  a  girth  of  7  feet.  Oxen 
are  five  years  old  when  at  maturity,  weigh  16  cwt. ,  and  possess  a  girth  of  7-J  feet.  The 
soil  on  which  the  cattle  are  fed  is  light  and  gravelly, and  the  mean  temperature  of  the 
district  in  summer  is  60°,  and  in  winter,  40°.  The  grasses  cultivatedby  his  lordship  are 
perennial  rye-grass,  alsyke,  and  red  and  white  clovers.  The  Highland  cattle  are  not 
used  for  the  purposes  of  draft.  As  to  the  housing  of  them,  they,  in  winter,  have  open 
courts  and  byres,  and  the  feeding  is  principally  permanent  pasture,  and  in  winter 
straw  and  turnips.  Breeding  begins  when  the  animals  are  from  two  to  three. years  old ; 
and  as  to  handling,  they  are  generally  housed  in  winter  in  our  part  of  the  country,  but 
in  the  West  Highlands  they  seldom  are  housed,  but  in  stormy  weather  they  are  fed  on 
meadow  hay. 

Mr.  E.  B.  Saunders,  of  Guisbro,  Yorkshire,  who  resided  among  the 
West  Highland  breed  of  cattle  on  the  west  coast  of  Scotland  before 
going  to  act  as  the  agent  of  Sir  Joseph  Pease,  M.  P.,  says  : 

This  breed  is  managed  under  a  variety  of  systems,  some  only  keeping  cows  for  breed- 
ing purposes,  others  buying  the  young  cattle  and  keeping  them  from  one  to  two  years 
before  selling  them  to  the  owners  of  parks  and  good  pastures,  when  they  are  fattened. 
This  applies  to  both  heifers  and  bullocks.  In  a  few  cases  the  heifers  are  crossed 
with  a  Shorthorn  bull,  and  after  rearing  a  good  calf,  are  fattened.  The  West  High- 
land being  devoted  to  meat  production,  and  rarely  used  for  dairy  purposes,  it  is,  per 
haps,  impossible  to  obtain  in  the  British  Islands  any  reliable  record  giving  the  annual 
average  yield  of  rni^k  per  cow  or  the  quantity  required  for  the  manufacture  of  a  given 
quantity  of  butter  or  cheese.  The  size  of  the  animals  varies  according  to  the  shelter 
and  food  given  when  young. 

The  cows  mature  at  five  years  old,  and  weigh  50  stone,  of  14  pounds  each,  deadweight. 
Bulls  are  afc  maturity  at  four  years  and  oxen  at  the  same  period,  the  former  weighing 
70  stone,  of  14  pounds,  and  the  latter,  60,  dead  weight.  The  steers  equal  the  Short- 
horns in  the  proportion  of  meat  on  arriving  at  maturity.  The  nature  of  the  soil  in 
the  valleys  is  deep  loamy,  that  on  the  higher  grounds  a  thin  covering  of  dry  friable 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  147 

soil,  partly  lying  on  whin-stone  (trap-rock,)  and  the  Western  Islands  on  granite.  The 
mean  temperature  in  summer  is  (SO0,  and  45°  in  winter.  The  animals  are  never  nse<4 
for  the  purposes  of  draft.  The  in-calf  cows  have  generally  the  best  sheltered  ground, 
with  an  open  shed,  but  in  some  cases  are  tied  up  in  houses.  Through  the  winter 
the  calves  have  the  same  housing.  The  food  consists  of  bog  or  meadow  hay,  twice 
a  day  after  the  1st  of  January.  The  young  store  cattle  are  not  housed  after  they 
reach  one  year  old,  and  in  many  cases  only  get  hay  or  straw  when  the  rough  grasses 
in  the  woods  and  valleys  are  covered  with  snow.  On  some  farms  where  straw  and 
turnips  are  grown  the  cows  and  calves  are  partly  fed  on  these.  In  a  great  many  in- 
stances all  the  three-year  old  cattle  leave  their  native  grounds  for  gentlemen's  parks, 
when  they  are  given  hay  and  cake  once  a  day  through  winter.  The  cows  are  usually 
disposed  of  from  eight  to  ten  years  of  age  to  the  butcher.  In  the  best  herds  the  heifers 
are  not  served  by  the  bull  until  three  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Bobert  Stewart,  of  Stirling,  says  lie  never  breeds  the  West 
Highlander  for  dairy  purposes,  and  that  although  they  give  no  great 
quantity  of  milk,  yet  it  is  rich  in  quality.  His  calves  suck  the  cows, 
and  follow  them  at  foot  in  summer.  The  breed  at  about  five  years  is 
at  maturity,  and  7  cwt.  is,  he  considers,  a  fair  average  live  weight  for 
a  well-bred  cow,  10  cwt.  for  a  well-conditional  bull,  while  a  well-bred 
and  well-fed  ox  at  that  age  should  average  16  cwt.  The  proportion  of 
meat  at  maturity  of  a  fattened  steer  is  about  10  cwt.  Here,  where  the 
cattle  are  mostly  bred  and  not  fed,  their  food  consists  only  of  rough 
natural  grass  in  summer  and  meadow  hay  in  winter.  None  of  the 
animals  are  used  for  draft  purposes  of  which  Mr.  Stewart  is  aware, 
and  as  to  housing,  he  states  that  the  cows  are  in  winter  housed,  and 
also  that  the  calves  are  put  in  in  winter  till  a  year  old  ;  but  the  bulls 
and  two-year  olds  winter  quite  as  well  outside.  The  feeding  is  generally 
meadow  hay.  The  animals,  except  those  for  breeding  are  generally 
sold  when  two  years  old. 

(14)  GALLOWAY  CATTLE. 

The  secretary  of  the  Galloway  Cattle  Society  (the  Rev.  Mr.  Gillespie, 
of  Mouswald),  says  the  Polled  Angus  is  a  magnificent  breed  for  particu- 
lar circumstances ;  but  there  is  not  a  breed  possessing  so  many  recom- 
mendations to  American  breeders  as  the  Galloways.  There  is  no  breed 
of  Polled  cattle  in  Britain  so  impressive  and  influential  as  the  Gallo- 
ways in  crossing  with  horned  cattle,  with  the  view  of  getting  quit  of  the 
horns.  He  affirms  that  where  a  pure  well-bred  Galloway  bull  is  put  to 
cows  of  any  horned  breed  the  produce  in  ninety-nine  cases  out  of  every 
one  hundred  will  be  polled,  and  he  leaves  those  in  a  position  to  judge  to 
say  whether  there  is  any  other  Polled  breed  of  which  the  same  can  be 
said.  Then  there  is  their  hardy  character,  which  is  a  great  point  in  their 
favor.  There  is  no  breed  he  states,  except  perhaps  the  West  Highlands, 
so  peculiarly  fitted  for  exposure  to  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  experienced 
in  many  parts  of  the  Western  States,  where  a  large  number  of  cattle  have 
to  lay  out  at  all  seasons.  The  breed  is  also  a  capital  beef-producing  one, 
and  he  is  sorry  to  observe  that  in  recent  years  breeders  have  been  doing 
so  little  towards  bringing  this  quality  before  the  notice  of  the  public. 

As  an  instance  of  what  may  be  done  he  refers  to  the  way  in  which 
Mr.  McCombie  has  taken  the  Polled  Angus  breed  into  the  world  and 
made  a  name  for  it.  That  gentleman  has  shown  the  public  the  merits 
of  the  breed,  and  the  result  is  well  known.  The  Aberdeen  farmers  have 
great  reason  to  bless  the  name  of  the  late  Mr.  McCombie  in  all  time 
coming,  says  Mr.  Gillespie,  and  he  thinks  the  breeders  of  Galloways 
have  been  too  backward  in  showing  the  world  the  superiority  of  their 
animals  for  beef-producing  purposes.  Outsiders,  however,  are  begin- 


148  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

ning  to  see  that  the  breed  possesses  great  merits,  hence  its  growing  popu- 
larity. In  1861  Mr.  MeCombie  won  both  at  Smithtield  and  Birmingham 
with  Galloway  animals  bred  by  the  Duke  of  Buccleuch ;  and  in  1872 
Mr.  James  Cunningham  won  a  prize  with  a  heifer  bred  by  Mr.  Biggar, 
of  Chapelton,  which  had  previously  taken  first  prizes  in  the  Highland 
Society's  Shows,  and  afterwards  won  the  champion  prize  in  the  Polled 
class  at  Smithneld.  Mr.  Gillespie  thinks  the  Galloway  breeders  are 
greatly  indebted  to  Mr.  Jardiue,  of  Castlemik,  for  what  he  has  done  in 
recent  years  towards  bringing  the  breed  to  the  front,  and  that  the  cattle 
had  a  better  name  in  the  world  ten  or  twenty  years  ago  than  it  at  pres- 
ent has  simply  because  more  was  done  then  than  now  to  display  their 
merit.  If,  adds  Mr.  Gillespie,  the  breeders  all  over  the  country  had  taken 
pains  to  maintain  the  prestige  of  the  stock  they  would  now  have  been 
in  a  much  more  favorable  position,  and  if  now  they  do  their  duty  to  their 
cattle  the  money  value  of  the  animals  will  rapidly  rise. 

The  Galloway  is  not  a  special  milking  race,  and  is  little  used  for 
either  butter  or  cheese  making,  nor  is  it  used  for  draft,  although  a 
few  isolated  farmers  may  be  seen  with  it  at  the  plow.  They  are  an  old 
breed,  and  were  highly  valued  as  long  as  fifty  years  ago,  when  small 
horns  were  sometimes  seen.  Then  their  average  weight  was  60  to  70 
stone,  but  it  is  now  much  increased.  The  hide  is  thin  and  the  meat  is 
wonderfully  well  marbled,  and  found  in  the  best  parts  in  abundance. 
They  are  bred  in  Scotland  almost  entirely,  but  large  numbers  are  brought 
into  England  and  sold  at  the  fairs  to  farmers  for  fattening.  The  milk, 
tolerable  in  quantity  for  a  grazing  beast,  is  decidedly  rich,  but  it  is 
largely  the  custom  to  spay  heifers,  and  at  one  time  the  practice  was 
still  more  general.  The  calves  are  very  often  allowed  to  run  with  the 
dam,  but  to  have  only  one-half  her  milk,  the  other  half  going  into  the 
house.  This  is  managed  by  the  dairymaid  milking  two  teats  twice  a  day 
and  affixing  a  spiked  muzzle  to  the  calf.  The  Galloways  are  grand 
beasts,  and  their  native  home  is  the  wet  mountainous  district  of  the 
southwest  of  Scotland,  and  although  considered  by  some  people  to  be 
similar  in  character  to  the  Polled  Augus,  they  are  much  hardier  and 
more  vigorous  as  a  race.  There  is  no  question  that  they  are  not  such 
early  maturing  beasts  as  the  Angus,  the  Hereford,  or  the  Shorthorn, 
although,  in  truth,  they  have  hitherto  received  no  such  help  from  the 
breeder  as  has  been  bestowed  upon  those  famous  races.  The  Galloway 
is  thicker  in  its  hide  than  the  Angus,  and  when  it  is  remembered  that 
to  withstand  exposure  and  extreme  cold  this  is  necessary,  it  will  be 
understood  that  for  mellowness,  and  consequently  meat  production,  it 
would  be  hardly  fair  to  claim  the  same  quality  for  the  one  as  for  the 
other.  For  these  cold  bleak  districts,  more  especially  if  they  are  also 
wet,  the  Galloway  will  at  all  times  beat  his  more  polished  rival. 

The  Galloway  Poll  is  not  such  a  very  bad  feeder.  Half  a  dozen  cat- 
tle were  recently  sold  by  live  weight  to  a  Liverpool  butcher  at  $d.  per 
pound  of  carcass  weight,  which  was  assumed  to  be 53  percent,  of  their 
live  weight,  ascertained  on  a  weighing-machine  immediately  before  the 
meal  hour.  The  lot  consisted  of  three  two-year  old  bullocks  and  an 
equal  number  of  Shorthorn- Ayrshire  crosses  of  the  same  age.  Four  of 
these  animals  had  been  bred  on  the  farm,  and  the  remaining  two  had  been 
summered  and  wintered  on  it.  They  had  been  fed  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  previous  lot,  and  the  balance  of  percentage  in  the  butcher's  favor 
was  even  higher  than  in  the  first  lot.  From  the  following  figures  it 
will  be  seen  that  the  Galloways  killed  decidedly  better  than  the  Short- 
horn-Ayrshire crosses.  The  former  showed  a  higher  carcass  weight 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM. 


149 


than  was  estimated,  while  in  the  case  of  the-crosses  a  contrary  return 
was  made.    The  following  are  the  details: 


Description  of  animal. 

Live  weight. 

Estimated 
carcass 
•weight. 

Actual  car- 
cass 
•weight. 

Stone,  pounds. 
72         6 

Pounds. 
537 

Pounds. 
602 

j)o            ....       

71         7 

530 

560 

75         2 

557 

590 

Cross  bnllock                                                                      ...... 

74         0 

549 

506 

Do  

59        10 

443 

408 

Do  

CO         0 

445 

492 

3,061 

3,158 

SECOND  REPORT  ON  THE  GALLOWAY  CATTLE.* 

The  Galloway  breeders  of  England  and  Scotland  are  justifiably  jealous 
of  the  efforts  which  have  been  made  from  time  to  time  by  rival  breeders 
to  depreciate  their  breeds,  or  to  insinuate  that  their  origin  is  of  recent 
date.  There  can  be  no  doubt,  however,  that  the  Galloway  is  one  of  the 
oldest  of  our  pure  races,  and  that  it  has  been  bred  for  many  genera- 
tions to  a  particular  type,  while  it  is  believed  to  be  beyond  doubt  that 
they  have  contributed  in  a  marked  degree  to  the  formation  and  improve- 
ment of  some  of  the  other  leading  British  breeds.  At  all  events  it  is 
known  that  they  have  entered  largely  in  times  gone  by  into  the  east  of 
England  breeds,  more  especially  in  those  districts  which  are  now  famous 
for  the  Eed  Polls. 

During  the  last  century  the  Galloway  was  perhaps  better  known  than 
any  other  breed,  for  it  has  been  very  frequently  described  by  agricul- 
tural writers  of  that  period  as  a  symmetrical  beast  of  high  quality  and 
considerable  beauty,  and  one  which  was  adapted  for  early  maturity  and 
rapidity  in  fattening  as  well  as,  or  perhaps  better,  than  any  other  breed 
that  was  then  known.  This  quality  they  have  maintained  to  the  present 
day,  and  it  is  the  more  remarkable,  inasmuch  as  the  pastures  upon 
which  they  graze  are  much  inferior  to  those  in  other  parts  of  the  coun- 
try where  equally  famous  breeds  are  bred  and  led.  At  the  present  time 
they  maintain  their  position  for  rapid  growth  and  good  feeding,  and 
they  have  for  a  long  period  held  a  leading  place  in  the  London  meat 
markets,  where  they  are  not  infrequently  found  at  a  very  early  age,  the 
grain  of  the  flesh  being  extremely  delicate  and  rich  in  flavor  as  well  as 
finely  marbled  with  fat.  Whether  or  not  the  breed  h  as  at  any  time  been 
crossed  with  the  horned  races  of  England  it  is  difficult  to  say,  and  the 
information  is  somewhat  conflicting,  the  Galloway  breeders  entirely  dis- 
believing it,  and  quoting  the  apparently  absurd  results  which  would 
have  been  obtained  by  the  use  of  horned  bulls,  although  it  is  forgotten 
that  in  crossing  horned  beasts  with  either  the  Galloway  or  the  Aberdeen 
it  is  a  fact  that  almost  every  animal  produced  comes  without  horns. 
That  Galloway  breeders  have  been  most  skilful  in  their  work  as  well  as 
in  their  feeding  and  management  there  is  no  doubt,  but  we  should  not 
like  to  assert  in  any  dictatorial  manner  that  they,  like  other  breeders, 

*  In  forwarding  this  second  report  on  Galloway  cattle,  under  date  of  March  15, 1884, 
Consul  Shaw  says  :  I  herewith  forward  with  pleasure  a  supplemental  report  on  the 
Galloway  breed  of  cattle  for  insertion  in  the  able  and  full  report  which  I  had  the 
honor  to  transmit  on  the  19th  of  February.  Mr.  Jacues  JLong,  who  has  prepared  the 
same,  thinks  this  additional  data  specially  useful. 


150  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

have  not  now  and  then  found  it  beneficial  (we  speak  of  the  past)  to 
have  recourse  to  other  breeds  for  improvement. 

There  appears  to  be  a  tradition  that  at  one  time  the  race  was  horned, 
but  it  is  certain,  however,  that  those  who  have  pretended  to  keep  it 
pure  have  at  all  times  abolished  every  trace  of  horn,  and  declined  to 
use  animals  for  stock  which  had  this  apparent  blemish,  and  one  which 
was  considered  a  certain  sign  of  impurity.  It  is  believed  at  the  present 
day  that  there  is  far  less  sign  of  horn  even  in  the  most  incipient  stage 
in  the  Galloway  race  than  there  is  in  either  the  Eed  Poll  or  the  Angus. 

It  has  been  stated  repeatedly  that  the  Galloway  is  a  more  vigorous, 
lusty,  and  hardy  beast  than  any  other  variety,  inclusive  of  the  Welsh  and 
the  West  Highland ;  that  it  exceeds  the  Welsh  in  these  respects  there 
can  be  no  doubt,  but  we  do  not  think  it  is  quite  so  hardy  as  the  West 
Highland,  the  coat  of  which  enables  it  to  brave  the  weather  at  all  sea- 
sons of  the  year  better  than  any  of  our  native  breeds.  Again,  the  breed 
has  often  been  charged  with  coarseness  on  account  of  the  thickness  of 
its  skin ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  breeders,  while  endeavor- 
ing to  improve  the  quality  of  flesh  by  every  means  in  their  power,  have 
studiously  retained  a  certain  thickness  of  skin  which  they  have  justly 
considered  to  be  consistent  with  their  hardiness,  so  that  in  reality  it  is 
one  of  the  principles  of  the  breeders  of  the  Galloways  to  combine,  as  far 
as  possible,  quality  of  flesh  with  a  tolerable  thickness  of  skin,  and  it  is 
somewhat  remarkable  that  in  this  they  have  succeeded ;  for,  excepting 
in  the  thinnest  skinned  beast  which  is  much  less  hardy,  there  is  no  ani- 
mal more  mellow  to  the  touch  or  full  of  quality.  They  also  endeavor  to 
retaip,  as  far  as  it  is  possible  for  them  to  do  so,  a  thick  coat  with  rather 
long  hair,  for,  although  they  do  not  inhabit  a  district  so  wild  or  so  high 
and  bleak  as  the  West  Highland  breed,  that  portion  of  the  south  of 
Scotland  and  north  of  England  is  by  no  means  well  protected  from  the 
weather  and  the  winds  even  in  valleys.  In  some  parts  they  are  placed 
on  the  hills,  which,  as  is  well  known,  are  bleak  an$  exposed  in  the 
extreme,  and  there  they  appear  to  thrive  uncommonly  well,  and  to  oc- 
cupy ground  from  which  it  is  not  likely  they  will  be  displaced  by  any 
other  native  breed,  unless  the  West  Highland  should  be  introduced, 
which  is  most  unlikely. 

It  has  often  been  remarked  by  foreign  buyers  visiting  the  Galloway 
district  that  they  could  not  have  believed  it  possible  to  maintain,  in 
such  great  perfection,  many  of  the  herds  of  high-bred  Galloways  which 
they  have  seen,  in  these  cold  and  elevated  regions  (sometimes  1,500 
feet  above  the  sea),  where  nothing  is  found  but  the  famous  mountain 
sheep  of  the  country,  and  decidedly  miserable  fare,  for  the  crops  culti- 
vated are  necessarily  few  and  poor.  Again,  notwithstanding  the  fact 
that  the  winters  are  most  severe,  it  is  frequently  the  case  that  the  Gal- 
loway is  entirely  kept  out  of  doors ;  occasionally  an  open  shed  is  erected 
for  them  to  shelter  themselves  when  they  choose,  but  as  a  general  rule 
they  have  to  rely  for  protection  upon  that  which  nature  affords,  some- 
times being  assisted  with  a  little  hay,  which  is  usually  carried  to  them 
when  snow  is  upon  the  ground  or  when  the  frost  is  severe.  It  is  stated 
by  Mr.  Gillespie  that  this  system  is  pursued,  not  because  of  the  expense 
or  trouble,  but  because  the  farmers  believe  that  they  are  able  to  stand 
the  winter  with  ease  and  to  grow  much  better  during  the  following  sum- 
mer than  if  wintered  under  cover. 

Young  beasts  of  from  1J  to  2  years  old  are  often  sold  in  the  markets 
at  £25  to  £30  each,  never  having  been  sheltered  since  they  were  weaned. 
This  vigor  is  not  solely  the  characteristic  of  the  adult  beast,  for  when  a 
cow  calves  in  the  open,  in  severe  weather,  the  calf  itself  does  not  ap- 


THE    UNITED    KINGD.OM. 


151 


pear  to  lose  activity  or  to  feel  the  severity  of  the  weather  as  might  be 
expected,  but  is  as  happy  and  contented,  when  thoroughly  dry,  as  if  in 
a  warm  stable  upon  plenty  of  straw.  The  hardy  constitution  of  the 
breed  enables  it  (and  this  is  somewhat  strange)  to  withstand  the  fatigue 
of  long  journeys  to  market  towns  as  well  as  it  withstands  the  cold  of 
winter  ;  and  when  it  is  found  necessary  to  drive  any  of  the  beasts  to 
fairs,  at  distances  of  from  100  to  200  miles,  they  usually  arrive  in  a 
much  fresher  condition  than  any  other  animal  known  to  the  cattle 
dealer. 

It  is  stated  above  that  Galloway  beef  is  favored  in  the  London  market 
by  the  butchers  ;  indeed  it  may  not  be  known  that  it  is  classed  as  prime 
Scot,  a  term  so  well  known  to  readers  of  the  London  newspapers,  where 
the  price  of  meat  is  quoted.  It  has  repeatedly  been  proved,  not  only 
by  the  meat  salesmen  themselves,  but  by  breeders  and  feeders,  that  no 
beast  obtains  a  higher  price,  not  even  the  Aberdeen,  and  certainly  not 
the  Shorthorn  or  the  Hereford.  In  fact  it  is  very  seldom  that  meat  of 
any  kind,  at  the  Christmas  market  especially,  reaches  the  quality  of  the 
best  Galloway.  Testimonies  without  number  could  easily  be  obtained, 
and  several  have  been  obtained  by  the  Galloway  society  and  published 
in  their  description  of  the  breed,  in  which  butchers  in  various  parts  of 
the  country  have  testified  to  the  quality  and  value  of  the  meat.  The 
Galloways  are  generally  considered  to  dress  to  the  extent  of  60  per  cent. 
of  their  live  weight,  and  occasionally  an  animal  is  found  to  exceed  this, 
which,  it  will  be  admitted,  is  exceptionally  good.  This  depends  chiefly 
upon  the  system  of  the  feeder  amijwLthe  management  of  the  animals. 

The  following  quotation  frc^TWclwcription  of  the  Galloway  by  the 
editor  of  the  Herd-bookj^nbe  orap  value  in  arriving  at  a  knowl- 
edge upon  this 


One  year  three  months 

Two  years  three  months 

Three  years  three  months 
Four  years 


While  these  may  be  regardea  as  an  average,  far  heavier  weights  have 
been  reached  whenever  an  effort  has  been  made  to  force  forward  individ- 
ual animals.  It  appears  from  the  catalogues  of  the  Sinithfield  Fat  Stock 
Show  that  in  1883  a  pure-bred  Galloway  steer,  at  two  years  ten  months 
three  weeks  old,  weighed  19  cwts.  20  pounds,  viz,  2,148  pounds  weight 
when  1,055  days  old,  which  makes  an  average  of  2  pounds  daily  increrse 
in  live  weight. 

In  1882  a  pedigree  Galloway  steer,  two  years  nine  months  one  week 
old,  weighed  17  cwt.  18  pounds,  viz,  1,922  pounds  weight  when  1,004  days 
old,  which  shows  an  average  of  1.91  pounds  per  day  of  increase.  An- 
other pedigree  Galloway  at  the  same  show  turned  the  scales  at  15  cwt. 
2  quarters  18  pounds,  when  two  years  eight  months  three  weeks  old, 
viz,  1,754  pounds  weight  when  973  days  old,  which  is  equivalent  to  1.8 
pounds  of  daily  increase.  It  seems  remarkable  that  at  the  principal 
cattle  shows  in  England  the  Galloway  is  seldom  seen,  and  this  is  more 
particularly  the  case  at  the  Christmas  fat-stock  exhibitions.  The  de- 
mand being  considerable,  and  as  the  breeders  live  at  a  great  distance 
and  do  not  care  for  the  system  of  forcing  cattle  for  exhibition,  they 


152  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

prefer  to  leave  the  glories  of  the  prize  ring  to  the  other  Scotch  breeds, 
such  as  the  Angus  and  the  West  Highland. 

This,  perhaps,  in  a  measure  (although  it  would  be  impossible  to  de- 
tract from  the  value  of  the  breed),  has  without  doubt  contributed  to  the 
popularity  of  the  other  breeds  and  to  the  want  of  knowledge  with  re- 
gard to  the  Galloway  itself. 

As  this  breed  is  so  essentially  a  meat-making  one,  it  will  hardly  be  sup- 
posed that  as  a  milker  it  has  any  especial  value,  but,  like  the  Devon, 
although  it  does  not  give  a  large  quantity,  it  gives  milk  of  a  marvel- 
lous quality.  Some  strains,  however,  give  very  much  more  than  others, 
while  there  are  those  which  make  a  most  respectable  quantity  of  but- 
ter in  proportion  to  the  milk  they  give.  Speaking  of  it  generally,  it  is  a 
non-milking  breed  5  hence  we  have  found  it  entirely  impossible  to  ob- 
tain any  authentic  records  either  of  milk,  butter,  or  cheese  production, 
although  there  are  numerous  cases  in  which  owners  have  estimated 
the  yields  of  particular  cows  at  from  9  to  12  pounds  per  week  in  the 
middle  of  the  summer  season.  We  believe,  however,  that  just  as  the 
Bed  Poll  of  Suffolk  and  Korfolk  has  been  by  judicious  selection  con- 
verted into  a  milk -producing  breed,  so  by  great  care  in  selection  and 
breeding  the  Galloway  could  be  made,  certainly  not  the  best  of  milk- 
ing breeds,  but  one  of  considerable  value,  such  as  would  prove  most 
profitable  to  those  who  kept  it  for  the  purpose  of  making  either  butter 
or  cheese. 

That  the  marvelous  prepotency  of  the  Galloway  breed  is  an  evidence 
of  its  purity  and  ancient  character  we  firmly  believe,  and,  as  we  re- 
marked above,  just  as  when  mated  with  horned  cows  it  produces  the 
calf  without  horns,  so  does  the  color  of  the  progeny  remain,  being  either 
an  entire  black  or  a  black  which  is  slightly  mingled  with  white  or  shaded 
with  blue.  This  fact  leads  us  to  make  the  suggestion  that  it  would  be 
possible  to  cross  the  Galloway  upon,  for  instance,  Shorthorn  cows  of  su- 
perior milking  quality  and  yet  maintain  the  chief  characteristics  of  the 
breed,  and  as  it  is  admitted,  even  by  the  breeders  themselves,  that  it  is 
often  difficult  to  tell  a  beast  which  is  only  half  bred  from  one  of  pure 
breed,  so  is  it  apparent  that  many  of  the  objections  which  have  been 
made  to  Galloways  as  feeders  have  arisen  from  the  fact  that  the  observ- 
ation has  not  been  made  from  the  pure  breed,  but  from  the  cross-bred 
itself. 

The  Duke  of  Buccleuch  put  his  famous  Galloway  bull  Black  Prince 
of  Drumlanrig  (546),  to  two  long-horned  West  Highland  cows,  carefully 
selected  from  one  of  the  oldest  and  best  herds  of  that  noble  breed. 
When  the  produce  of  this  cross,  twa  heifers,  were  grazing  at  the  age 
of  about  eighteen  months  among  a  lot  of  nearly  a  score  of  pure-bred 
pedigree  Galloway  heifers,  half  a  dozen  of  the  most  experienced  and 
best-known  breeders  of  Galloways  were  asked  by  the  duke's  manager 
to  point  out  the  half  Galloways  among  the  pure  ones,  and  each  one  of 
these  experienced  judges  picked  out  the  wrong  animals,  so  closely  did 
the  one  in  every  particular  resemble  the 'other.  Galloway  bulls  have 
been  very  extensively  put  to  both  Shorthorn  and  Ayrshire  cows,  and  in 
England  especially  it  has  been  a  favorite  and  highly  successful  mode  of 
crossing  for  beef  purposes  to  use  the  Shorthorn  bull  on  the  Galloway 
cow.  By  either  mode  symmetrical  cattle  of  very  large  frames  have  been 
produced ;  they  have  proved  to  be  hardy,  and  their  meat  is  free  from 
patchiness,  well  mixed,  and  altogether  superior.  Galloway  crosses,  when 
liberally  reared  and  fed,  mature  early  and  reach  very  heavy  weights. 
At  the  Smithfield  fat  stock  show  in  1832  a  cross  steer,  by  a  Shorthorn 
bull  out  of  a  Polled  Galloway  cow,  weighed  1,480  pounds  when  one 


THE   UNITED -KINGDOM.  153 

year  and  eight  months  old,  showing  the  high  average  of  2.43  pounds 
per  day  of  its  life.  At  the  same  show  a  Galloway  cross,  similarly  bred, 
weighed  19  cwt.  3  qrs.  20  Ibs.  when  three  years  four  months  old,  that 
is,  2,232  pounds  when  its  age  was  twelve  hundred  and  seventeen  days, 
which  is  equivalent  to  an  average  of  1.83  pounds  daily  since  it  was 
calved.  At  Smithfield,  in  1383,  the  only  Galloway  cross  steer  exhibited 
turned  the  scales  at  1,816  pounds  when  ten  hundred  and  eighteen  days 
old,  making  an  average  of  1.78  pounds  of  daily  increase. 

Characteristics. — The  council  of  the  Galloway  Cattle  Society  of  Great 
Britain  have  drawn  up  a  standard  showing  the  characteristics  of  the 
Galloway  breed,  which  are  as  follows : 

Color:  Black,  with  a  brownish  tinge.  Head:  Short  and  wide,  with  broad  forehead 
and  wide  nostrils,  without  the  slightest  symptoms  of  horns  or  scurs  ;  eye,  large  and 
prominent ;  ear,  moderate  in  length  and  broad,  pointing  forwards  and  upwards,with 
fringe  of  long  hairs.  Neck:  Moderate  in  length,  clean  and  filling  well  into  the  shoul- 
ders, the  top  in  a  line  with  the  back  in  a  female,  and  in  a  male  naturally  rising  with 
age.  Body:  Deep,  rounded,  and  symmetrical ;  shoulders,  tine  and  straight,  moder- 
ately wide  above  (coarse  shoulder  points  and  sharp  or  high  shoulders  are  objection- 
able); breast,  full  and  deep  ;  back  and  rump,  straight ;  ribs,  deep  and  well  sprung; 
loin  and  sirloin,  well  filled;  hookbones,  not  prominent ;  hindquarters,  long,  moder- 
ately wide,  and  well  filled ;  flank,  deep  and  full.  Thighs :  Broad,  straight,  and  well 
let  down  to  hock  (rounded  buttocks  are  very  objectionable)  ;  legs,  short  and  clean, 
with  fine  bone;  tail,  well  set  on  and  moderately  thick.  Skin:  Mellow  and  moder- 
ately thick;  hair,  soft  and  wavy,  with  mossy  undercoat  (wiry  or  curly  hair  is  Tery 
objectionable). 

(15)  WELSH  CATTLE. 
Mr.  Harvey,  editor  of  the  Her d-Book,  says : 

The  Black  Welsh  cattle  are  natives  of  the  counties  of  Pembroke,  Carmarthen,  and 
Cardigan,  and  are  more  generally  known  as  Pembrokeshire  Blacks,  subdivided  into 
Castlemartin  and  Dewslaud  breeds.  From  Cardiganshire  they  also  extend  along  the 
North  Wales  coast  up  to  Anglesea,  and  are  then  called  the  North  Wales  or  Auglesea 
breeds.  Whether  they  were  ever  indigenous  to  Radnorshire  or  Breconshire  I  am  not 
aware,  but  as  I  have  an  intimate  knowledge  of  both  these  counties,  I  can  say  from 
long  personal  observation  that  they  are  not  now  to  be  found  in  either  of  them.  In 
Glamorganshire  they  are  to  be  found  in  the  seigniory  of  Gower ;  but  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  county  there  is  a  native  breed,  which  is,  however,  becoming  rapidly  sup- 
planted by  Shorthorns  and  Herefords. 

The  breed  of  Black  cattle  is  generally  supposed  to  be  descended  from  the  Bos  pri- 
miffcnius,  and  is  allied  to  the  wild  cattle  in  Chillingham  Park,  and  also  to  the  Devons. 
They  may  be  described  as  a  horned  breed,  generally  of  black  color,  and  frequently 
with  white  marks  ou  the  udders  of  the  cows,  also  ti  few  white  hairs  at  the  end  of  the 
tail.  Sometimes  a  few  white  hairs  are  mixed  up  with  the  coat,  but  this  is  not  always 
hereditary,  and  only  comes  out  occasionally.  A  brown-black,  approaching  a  choco- 
late, is  considered  a  good  color.  Occasionally  there  are  some  cows  striped  red  and 
black ;  also  somo  quite  white,  with  black  ears,  muzzle,  and  feet,  but  these  are  becom- 
ing very  rare.  The  horns  should  be  of  a  rich  yellow ;  they  arc  generally  tipped  with 
black,  and  do  not  come  out  yellow  to  the  very  end  like  Herefords.  There  is  a  differ- 
ent pitch  of  horn  for  bulls  and  cows.  A  bull's  horns  should  be  low  and  well  spread  ; 
the  cow's  narrower  and  the  pitch  more  upright.  The  steers  and  oxen  take  more  after 
the  bulls.  This  description  applies  in  a  great  measure  to  the  Anglesey  cattle.  These 
are,  however,  broader  on  the  back  and  shorter  in  the  leg,  with  more  hair.  The  heads 
are  heavier  and  the  horns  not  so  yellow  as  the  Pembrokeshire.  A  really  good  animal 
of  the  Black  breed  should  approach  very  closely  in  shape  to  the  modern  fashionable 
breeds,  and  by  careful  and  judicious  crossing  this  has  sometimes  been  attained. 

The  natural  characteristics  of  the  breed  may,  however,  be  described  as  narrow  on 
the  shoulder  and  chine,  slack  on  the  loins,  an  inclination  to  be  high  on  the  rump,  and 
flat-sided.  They  aro  generally  deep  in  front  and  light  behind.  It  must  not,  how- 
ever, bo  supposed  that  every  bullock  has  all  these  defects,  but  some  of  them  are  to 
be  found  in  the  generality  of  the  cattle  offered  at  the  country  fairs.  Other  breeds  of 
cattle  with  these  natural  defects  may  also  be  found,  but  care  and  attention  have  modi- 
fied them  very  much,  and  the  object  of  the  Herd-Book  is  to  create  such  an  interest  in 
the  Blacks  as  may  render  badly  shaped  cattle  as  "  few  and  far  between  "  as  they  are 
in  the  Hereford  and  Shorthorn  districts. 


164  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

The  special  characteristics  of  the  Blacks,  which  make  them  so  valuable,  are :  Hardi- 
doocl  of  constitution,  aptitude  for  dairy  purposes,  and  docility. 

As  regards  hardiness  of  constitution,  no  one  acquainted  with  the  common  method  of 
rearing  the  calves  and  their  subsequent  treatment  and  the  hardships  they  undergo 
can  have  any  doubt  on  that  point.  The  great  wonder  is  that  respectable-looking 
cattle  can  bo  shown  after  having  been  reared  in  such  a  manner.  Daring  the  time 
when  the  rinderpest  caused  such  havoc,  that  fell  disease  was  not  known  in  South 
Wales,  principally  from  the  great  exertions  made  by  the  county  magistrates  and 
other  authorities  to  prevent  the  transit  of  infected  animals,  but  also  because  the 
constitutions  of  the  cattle  were  so  good  that  even  on  the  frontier  of  infected  districts 
they  repelled  the  disease.  When  the  Blacks  were  taken  into  counties  where  the  rind- 
erpest was  prevalent  they  seldom,  if  ever,  caught  the  infection.  The  same  immunity 
also  existed  when  the  foot-and-mouth  disease  was  so  general.  There  were  certainly 
some  cases  supposed  to  have  been  caused  by  the  importation  of  Irish  cattle,  but  upon 
inquiry  it  will  be  found  that  those  herds  of  cows  which  consisted  of  Shorthorns,  Ayr- 
shire, and  Guernsey  were  those  that  suffered. 

As  to  aptitude  for  dairy  purposes,  I  do  not  trust  merely  to  the  report  of  others,  but, 
having  for  some  years  had  a  dairy  of  from  18  to  20  cows,  I  can  speak  personally  of 
the  qualifications  of  this  breed  in  that  respect.  Some  of  these  20  were  in  every  year 
heifers  which  had  their  first  calf,  and  were  not  so  profitable  as  older  animals.  My 
account  book  shows  the  churning  as  under : 

Pounds. 

From  September  29,1862,  to  September  29,  1863 2,896 

From  September  29,  1863,  to  September  29,  1864 2,725 

From  September  29,  1864,  to  September  29,  1865,1 2,755 

From  September  29,  1865,  to  September  29,  1866 2, 450 

From  September  29.  1866,  to  September  29,  1867 2,815 

The  yield  of  butter  was  affected  by  the  dry  weather  in  some  seasons,  as  my  farm 
was  not  w'ell  watered.  As  regards  the  reduction  in  quantity  after  1863, 1  reared  more 
calves  every  year  afterward,  and  as  the  bull  calves  were  nearly  all  sold  for  stock  pur- 
poses they  had  to  be  kept  well.  I  also  had  on  an  average  about  25  cwt.  of  skim  cheese 
sold  every  year,  and  small  pigs  were  fed  on  the  whey  and  buttermilk,  and  turned  out 
to  grass  and  sold  as  "  stores,"  realizing  from  £23  to  £36  per  annum  profit  between 
buying  and  selling.  My  farm  was  only  about  70  acres,  and  it  will  thus  be  seen  that 
there  was  a  large  return  for  the  area.  *  I  have  also  heard  of  places  where  only  1  or  2 
Black  cows  were  kept  where  the  yield  of  butter  was  very  great,  amounting  to  11 
pounds  per  cow  per  week.  I  have  never  in  my  own  dairy  churned  more  than  10  to 
11  pounds  from  a  fresh-calved  cow ;  but  where  20  cows  are  grazing  on  a  small  area 
there  is  no  chance  of  very  great  individual  results. 

The  docility  of  the  breed  is  remarkable.  A  stranger  may  go  safely  into  a  herd  of 
cows,  but  it  is  not  safe  to  do  so  where  there  is  a  bull,  unless  accompanied  by  some 
person  acquainted  with  its  habits.  I  have  a  very  strong  feeling  that  bulls  after  they 
are  one  year  old  should  be  always  kept  in  the  house,  noo  only  avoiding  accidents,  but 
enabling  the  farmer  to  regulate  the  times  of  calving.  The  cows  stand  very  quietly  to 
be  milked  in  the  yard  or  in  the  house,  and  with  their  large,  fall  eyes  and  quiet  ex- 
pression look  the  very  picture  of  docility.  There  is  no  doubt  but  that  the  Black 
breed  as  now  reared  are  not  apt  to  fatten  at  an  early  age,  but  I  have  seen  instances 
where,  when  reared  like  the  improved  breeds,  they  have  done  LO.  Still  I  do  not  wish 
to  assert  that  at  present  they  are  so  profitable  for  stall-feeding,  but  I  maintain  that, 
looking  at  the  soil,  the  climate,  and  the  accommodation  for  them  during  the  winter, 
they  are  the  only  breed  that  will  pay  the  farmer's  rent.  Those  who  have  seen  a  good 
Black  ox  well  fed  have  always  acknowledged  that  there  cannot  be  a  handsomer  ani- 
mal. Butchers  will  tell  you  that  the  quality  of  the  meat  is  not  to  be  surpassed,  and 
that  the  internal  fat  is  much  in  excess  of  Shorthorns  and  Heref  ords  of  a  similar  size. 

The  usual  method  of  rearing  calves  is  to  take  the  calf  away  from  the  cow  after  a 
few  days,  and  then  give  it  nothing  but  skim-milk.  When  it  is  able  to  eat  it  is  given 
hay  and  barley  or  oatmeal,  upon  which  it  thrives  fairly.  But  in  the  month  of  May  or 
June  the  poor  animal  which  has  never  seen  grass,  and  does  not  know  what  it  is,  is 
turned  out  into  a  good  pasture,  and  there,  before  its  tender  mouth  can  properly  eat, 
it  loses  all  its  calf  flesh,  iind  when  the  winter  comes  on  it  is  still  lean.  My  own 
method  was  to  take  away  the  calf  after  a  few  days  and  give  it  its  own  mother's 
milk  for  one  month,  then  half  new  and  half  skim  for  a  fortnight,  and  afterwards  skim- 
milk  only  with  a  little  dissolved  oil-cake  mixed  with  it.  Sweet  hay  and  mangels  were 
given  as  soon  as  it  was  proper,  and  in  the  spring  cut  grass  was  gradually  introduced, 
so  that  the  calf,  when  turned  out  in  June,  readily  took  to  it.  A  little  milk  and  water, 
with  crubued  oats  and  some  oil-cake,  given  all  the  summer.  The  first  winter,  tur- 
nips, hay,  oil-cake,  and  oats,  and  then  turned  out  to  grass  at  one  year  old,  strong, 
useful  yearlings  with  good  constitutions.  Afterwards  they  had  no  corn  or  oil  cake, 
but  the  next  winter  fed  on  straw  and  turnips.  ' 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  155 

Mr.  Griffith  Lewis  says : 

I  give  my  calves  a  month's  new  milk ;  in  fact,  let  them  suck  the  cow.  I  then 
wean  them,  and  give  them,  for  two  months,  skim  milk-scalded,  and  as  soon  as  they 
will  eat  it  a  little  hay  and  oats.  I  then  turn  the  mout  in  to  grass  about  the  first  week 
in  June,  and  leave  them  out  till  the  first  week  in  October,  when  I  bring  them  in  at 
night  into  an  open  shed  and  give  them  hay  and  mangels  or  swedes.  I  never  rear  a 
calf  after  the  1st  of  April,  as  I  find  the  milk  becomes  too  rich  and  scours  them,  and 
also  they  are  not  strong  enough  to  be  turned  out  the  first  week  in  June.  You  can 
make  any  use  of  this  you  like^ 

Mr.  John  Richards  says : 

The  way  I  rear  my  calves  is :  I  leave  them  three  weeks  on  the  cow ;  after  that 
they  have  milk  twice  a  day,  and  oats,  oil-cake,  hay,  and  roots  till  they  are  four 
months  old;  then  they  are  turned  out  on  grass,  but  if  they  are  Christmas  calves  they 
are  kept  in  till  June. 

Mr.  Richard  Thomas  says  : 

Have  been  busy  at  the  hay  yesterday  and  the  day  before,  or  I  would  have 
answered  your  letter  sooner.  My  system  of  rearing  calves  is  to  give  them  new  milk 
for  three  weeks,  then  I  give  them  skim-milk  for  about  three  months,  with  hay,  man- 
gels, and  crushed  oats.  The  calves  I  rear  from  November  to  March  are  turned  out  to 
grass,  the  oldest  ones  in  May  and  the  others  in  June.  About  the  middle  of  August  I 
give  them  a  drench  for  the  murrain.  In  October  I  commence  giving  them  some 
crushed  oats  daily.  I  keep  this  lot  out  all  the  winter  in  a  dry,  sheltered  field,  and 
in  November  I  begin  giving  them  hay  twice  a  day.  The  calves  that  are  calved  after 
March  I  keep  in  till  the  following  spring,  in  a  yard  and  an  open  shed.  They  have 
the  same  quantity  of  new  milk,  and  about  two  months  skim-milk,  and  give  them 
hay,  mangels,  vetches,  and  oats.  In  winter  they  have  swedes,  hay,  and  fetraw.  I 
give  them  a  drench  the  same  time  as  the  others,  and  have  not  lost  one  calf  from  the 
murrain  this  twelve  years.  I  shall  be  most  happy  to  give  you  any  further  informa- 
tion should  you  require  it. 

The  Black  cattle,  which  were  more  conspicuously  placed  before  the  public  in  1874, 
when  the  first  Herd-Book  was  published,  have  improved  very  much  by  the  exertions 
of  the  farmers  and  by  the  noblemen  who  are  interested  in  the  result.  The  breed  is 
now  recognized  by  the  Royal  Agricultural  Society  in  its  exhibition  of  stock,  and  will 
soon  attain  the  perfection  of  form  and  weight  of  the  most  improved  breeds.  This 
arises  in  a  measure  from  tho  greater  care  taken  with  the  stock  whilst  quite  young, 
to  which  attention  was  drawn  in  the  first  Herd-Book. 

The  question  of  early  maturity  has  been  solved  satisfactorily  where  the  Blacks  have 
the  same  treatment  as  the  Shorthorn  and  Herefords,  and  Mr.  Harvey  says  he  has  seen 
cattle  killed  for  the  butcher's  stall  at  two  years  old  which  made  admirable  beef. 

Tho  Black  cattle  flourish  on  a  variety  of  soils,  the  limestone,  the  red  sandstone, 
and  the  clay-slate  formation  making  no  appreciable  difference  in  the  size  of  the  ani- 
mals. A  damp  and  moist  atmosphere  suits  them  very  well  indeed,  at  an  average  tem- 
perature of  about  52°.  I  may  add  that  they  are  very  hardy  and  do  well  as  outlyers, 
if  tolerably  well  kept ;  they  improve  most  rapidly  when  the  spring  comes  on  and  the 
early  grass  begins  to  grow.  I  entertain  the  idea  that  the  Black  cattle  are  the  most 
paying  breed  now  under  a  farmer's  care.  The  grasses  on  the  permanent  pasture  are 
principally  clovers,  trefoil,  cock-grass,  the  different  fescues,  timothy,  and  foxtail. 
The  grasses  used  in  farming  rotation  are  red  clover,  Dutch  clover,  rye  grass,  trefoil, 
and  cock-grass. 

The  Earl  of  Cawdor,  who  is  the  principal  exhibitor  of  Black  cattle 
in  England,  and  whose  animals  generally  reach  22  to  23  cwt.  at  Smith- 
field,  says: 

Their  prevailing  color  is  black,  with  long  thick  hair,  long  yellow  horns,  body  even 
and  well  shaped.  They  are  hardy  in  constitution,  strong,  docile,  useful  for  labor, 
when  necessary,  and  subsisting  on  scanty  herbage.  Their  flesh  is  of  excellent  qual- 
ity, lino  grain,  well  mixed,  and  the  extra  fat  more  inside  than  immediately  under  the 
skin.  The  mi  Iking  properties  of  this  breed  are  on  an  average  extremely  good,  each  cow 
givingf  rom  1 2  to  14  quarts  daily.  The  quantity,  quality,  color,  and  flavor  of  their  bnt- 
ter  cannot  be  surpassed.  They  get  to  maturity  at  an  early  age,  but,  like  every  other 
brood,  that  depends  entirely  upon  the  feeding.  Live  weight  of  bulls,  24  cwt. ;  oxen, 
22  cv.  L  ;  cows,  18  cwt.  The  hardiness  of  the  breed  renders  them  suitable  as  outlyers, 
and  they  rapidly  gain  flesh.  There  is  a  very  satisfactory  improvement  noticeable  in 
the  l)vood  of  this  cattle,  and  in  a  few  years  more  they  will  claim  an  honorable  posi- 
tion among  the  varied  breeds  of  Great  Britain.  The  soil  here  is  brownish,  light,  dry 


156  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

loana,  of  good  depth,  or  a  sort  of  mixed  limestone,  well  adapted  for  growing  excel- 
lent crops  of  swedes,  mangels.  &c.,  and  it  will  grow  heavy  crops  of  oats  (black  bet- 
ter than  white)  and  barley.  The  yield  of  grain  is  only  fair  in  finding  properties. 
Most  sorts  of  grasses  are  grown  in  this  neighborhood,  but  clover  is  not  a  certain  crop. 
The  climate  is  damp  and  changeable,  but  extremely  mild,  the  spring  .often  late  and 
cold,  with  a  prevailing  east  wind. 

The  annual  rainfall  of  the  districts  occupied  by  the  Black  cattle  is  about  twice  the 
amount  of  that  of  Chiswick,  and  the  westerly  winds  are  very  strong. 

Mr.  George  F.  Bowden  says  : 

It  requires  a  hardy  race  to  stand  the  exposure  during  the  winter  to  which  the  Black 
cattle,  without  any  shelter  except  the  high  hedges,  are  subject,  and  this  quality  of 
hardiness  of  constitution  is  possessed  by  the  Blacks.  In.  their  coats  and  general  ap- 
pearance they  show  the  first  approach  of  the  genial  spring.  There  is  no  animal  which 
commands  so  good  a  price  in  the  fairs  as  a  bullock  that  has  been  wintered  out  in  the 
fields  and  shows  fair  condition  and  a  good  coat.  To  those  who  wish  to  be  possessed 
of  a  good  herd  of  Blacks  I  would  say,  avoid  all  attempts  at  crossing — such  attempts 
have  never  yet  succeeded — but  purchase  the  best  pedigree  bull  of  as  good  a  strain  as 
you  can  get  for  the  money.  As  to  rearing  and  feeding  for  milk,  a  few  years  ago  I  pur- 
chased some  of  the  best  cows  to  be  procured  in  calf  to  noted  bulls.  I  was  enabled  to 
have  this  rare  opportunity  by  being  acquainted  with  several  of  the  best  breeders.  I 
have  tried  Shorthorns,  and  I  have  had  the  best  of  cows  procurable  for  milk  and  feed- 
ing purposes,  but  I  prefer  the  long  horn  Black  cow,  which  gives  rich  milk,  thick  cream, 
and  makes  beef  not  to  be  surpassed,  quite  equal  to  Scots,  and  commands  as  good  a 

Erice.  They  drop  better  and  hardier  calves,  and  I  have  never,  so  far,  lost  a  calf.  I 
ave  had  cows  calve  about  November  and  December,  and  all  times  of  the  year.  I 
keep  the  cow  and  calf  in  for,  say,  one  month  and  then  turn  them  out.  They  stand 
the  winter  wonderfully  well,  and  will  do  well  on  hay  and  chop  ;  sometimes  I  use  tur- 
nips and  rice  meal.  I  never  tie  up  any  only  those  I  milk  and  finish  off  for  the  butcher. 
Some  calves  I  have  reared  upon  their  mothers'  milk,  and  I  do  not  know  whether  this 
does  not  pay  best  in  the  long  run,  and  is  more  natural.  The  calves  reared  in  this  way 
at  one  year  old  are  as  big  and  have  better  hair  and  coats  than  those  reared  by  hand 
at  two  years  old.  I  do  not  believe  in  allowing  the  calf  to  suck  the  cow  and  keeping 
the  calf  in  the  shed,  but  rather  in  allowing  it  to  have  its  freedom  with  its  mother  on 
the  grass.  It  then  learns  to  eat  with  her,  and  when  they  are  separated  it  does  not 
feel  so  much  the  loss  of  the  mother's  milk  and  is  better  prepared  to  get  its  own  living. 
Other  calves  I  rear  on  skim-milk ,  calf  meal,  and  a  little  dissolved  oil-cake.  I  find  that 
new  milk  for  one  month  is  the  best  way  to  start  a  calf.  After  four  months  I  begin  to 
give  them  chop,  rice-meal,  and  linseed-cake,  and  continue  this  through  the  winter, 
all  given  out  of  doors.  I  find  also  that  for  feeding  purposes  it  best  answers  to  buy 
barren  heifers  and  bullocks  turned  three  years  old.  If  bought  at  two  years  old  they 
want  summering  and  wintering  in  the  sheds  on  turnips,  hay,  rice  meal,  Indian  meal, 
and  linseed-cake,  and  then  they  come  out  good  ones  at  three  years  old  and  very  fit  for 
the  butcher.  This  is  my  experience,  having  bought  several  trucks  for  myself  and 
others.  If  it  pays  the  Welsh  farmers  to  keep  this  class  of  cattle  on  poor  land  and  poor 
feed,  surely  they  ought  to  do  something  on  good  land  and  good  feed. 

JAMES  LONG. 
HEICHIN  ENGLAND,  l883->84. 


SELECT  BREEDS  OF  BRITISH  CATTLE. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  PACKARD,  OF  LIVERPOOL. 
INTRODUCTORY  AND  EXPLANATORY. 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  circular  dated  July 
IS,  1883,  in  reference  to  the  breeding  cattle  in  this  country  and  request- 
ing me  to  report  upon  the  same. 

The  difficulty  of  collecting  reliable  information  has  been  very  great. 
This  consulate  being  far  removed  from,  the  agricultural  and  farming 
districts  has  necessitated  the  writing  of  a  large  number  of  letters  to 


'  : 


'    & 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  157 

prominent  breeders.  In  many  cases  the  breeders  excused  themselves 
answering  the  questions  on.  account  of  their  voluminous  nature.  For 
much  of  the  information  I  have  been  able  to  obtain  I  am  greatly  in- 
debted to  Mr,  George  de  la  Perrelle,  of  Litherland,  near  Liverpool,  a  well- 
known  shipper  of  select  stock  for  breeding  purposes  to  Canada  and  the 
United  States. 

There  are  in  this  country  numerous  breeds  of  cattle,  but  as  a  number 
of  these  are  considered  of  inferior  sorts,  I  have  thought  it  best  to  report 
only  of  such  breeds  as  excel  in  merit  for  the  dairy  or  beef-making  pur- 
poses, and  at  the  same  "time  suitable  to  our  climate  and  soil,  such 
breeds  as  are  usually  selected  by  the  buyers  who  come  over  here  to  se- 
cure those  best  adapted  for  exportation  to  the  United  States.  They  are 
as  follows  :  Shorthorns,  Devous,  Sussex,  Herefords,  lied  Polled,  Polled 
Angus  or  Aberdeen,  Welsh,  Jerseys,  and  Ayrshires, 

THE  SHORT-HORN  CATTLE. 

Some  of  the  best  herds  of  this  celebrated  breed  are  to  be  found  in 

orkshire  and  the  north  and  northwest  counties  of  England,  but  more 
or  less  all  over  Great  Britain. 

The  following  descriptions  of  the  Short-horn  and  other  breeds  herein- 
after treated  are  more  or  less  borrowed  from  eminent  English  writers 
on  cattle,  and  suggest  strongly  the  points  of  excellence  which  should 
be  considered  by  the  buyer  of  thoroughbred  neat  stock. 

This  breed  possesses,  in  an  eminent  degree,  a  combination  of  qualities, 
and  are  rendered  attractive  to  the  eye  by  their  splendid  frames  and 
beautifully  varied  colors;  they  have  become  objects  of  public  curiosity, 
and  have  realized  for  their  breeders  enormous  sums  of  money. 

The  following  may  be  taken  as  a  fair  specimen  of  a  Yorkshire  cow : 

A  milch  cow,  good  for  the  pail  as  long  as  wanted,  and  then  quickly  got  into  mar- 
ketable condition,  should  have  a  long  and  rather  small  head ;  a  large-headed  cow  will 
seldom  fatten  or  yield  milk.  The  eye  should  be  bright,  yet  with  a  peculiar  placiduess 
and  quietness  of  expression  ;  the  chaps  thin  and  the  horns  small.  The  neck  should 
not  bo  so  thin  as  that  which  common  opinion  gives  to  this  milch  cow.  The  dewlap 
should  be  small ;  the  breast,  if  not  so  wide  as  in  some  that  have  an  unusual  dispo- 
sition to  fatten,  yet  far  from  being  narrow,  and  it  should  project  before  the  legs ;  the 
chine  to  a  certain  degree  fleshy;  the  girth  behind  the  shoulder  should  bo  deeper  than 
is  usually  found  in  the  Short-horn ;  the  ribs  should  spread  out  wide  so  as  to  give  as 
globular  a  form  as  possible  to  the  carcass,  and  each  should  project  farther  than  the 
preceding  one,  to  the  very  loins.  She  should  be  well  formed  across  the  hips  and  on 
to  the  rump,  and  with  greater  length  there  than  the  milker  generally  possesses,  or,  if 
a  little  too  short,  not  heavy.  If  she  stands  a  little  long  on  the  legs  it  rnuat  not  be  too 
long.  The  thighs  somewhat  thin,  with  a  slight  tendency  to  crookedness ;  the  tail  thick 
in  the  upper  part  but  tapering  below,  and  should  have  a  mellow  hide  and  li ttle,  coarse 
hair.  The  quantity  of  milk  given  by  some  of  these  cows  is  very  great,  and  no  un- 
common thing  to  yield  thirty  quarts  per  day  in  early  summer,  but  the  average  may  be 
estimated  at  twenty-two  to  twenty -four  quarts.  Ifc  is  said  that  this  milk  does  not 
yield  a  proportionate  quantity  of  butter,  and  that  although  these  cows  may  be  valu- 
able wheu  the  sale  of  milk  is  the  prime  object,  they  will  not  answer  for  the  dairy. 
That  their  milk  does  not  contain  the  same  proportionate  quantity  of  butter  as  that  of 
the  Long-horns,  the  Scotch  cattle  or  the  Devons  is  probably  true,  but  more  than  com- 
pensated by  the  additional  quantity  of  milk. 

It  also  appears  that  they  accumulate  flesh  and  mature  more  rapidly 
than  any  other  breed,  and,  in  consequence,  take  the  foremost  rank  of 
all  neat  cattle. 

The  colors  are  roan,  white,  red?  and  white  and  red. 


158 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY    FARMING. 


Animals. 

Average 

weight   at 
maturity. 

Average  size  at  ma- 
turity. 

Girth. 

Height. 

COW                                      ..    . 

Cwt. 
Iti  to  18 
18  to  20 
20  to  22 

Inches. 
90  to  100 
00  to  110 
90  to  110 

Inches. 
50  to  CO 
58  to  64 
58  to  64 

Bull       

Ox 

Age  at  maturity :  Throe  years. 

How  long  bred  pure:  Supposed  to  be  descended  from  the  white  cattle  of  Great  Britain.    Improve- 
ment of  breed  began  about  tho  year  1780. 
Annual  average  pounds  of  milk:  11,500  pounds. 
Milk  to  pounds  of  butter:  40  pounds  to  1  pound  butter. 


Product. 

Quantity. 

Meat  

Two-thirds 

of  gross 
weight. 
12  500 

Labor:  Little. 

Method  of  housing:  Young  stock  are  housed  from  November  to  March,  and  fat  and  milch  cows  are 
housed  at  night  from  October  to  May. 

Feeding  :  Fed  in  the  morning  with  hay,  roots,  and  oil-cake  and  Indian  meal,  then  turned  out  on  the 
pasture. 

Breeding  :  Commence  at  two  and  one-half  years. 

Grasses :  Eye-grass  and  clover. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  live  weights  of  fatted  cattle  of  this 
breed : 

Oxen  exceeding  3 J  and  not  exceeding  4  years  old :  No.  1,  2,029  pounds ; 
No.  2,  2,164  pounds;  No.  3,  2,395  pounds;  No.  4,  2,510  pounds;  No.  5, 
2,424  pounds;  No.  6,  2,149  pounds;  No.  7,  2,184  pounds;  No.  8,  2,296 
pounds. 

Steers  exceeding  2£  and  not  exceeding  3£  years  old ;  No.  1,  1,715  pounds ; 
No.  2,  1,883  pounds ;  No.  3, 1,666  pounds. 

Cows:  No.  1,  4  years  2  months  old,  1,874  pounds;  No.  2,  4  years  and 
2  months,  2,022  pounds ;  No.  3, 4  years  and  9  months,  1,604  pounds ;  No. 
4,  9  years  and  8  months,  2,177  pounds. 

Decrease :  In  consequence  of  the  high  price  of  meat  a  large  number  of 
prime  2-year-old  heifers  are  being  slaughtered,  thus  decreasing  the 
number  of  animals. 

Prices. — Prices  of  animals  of  this  breed  vary  very  much,  and  range  from 
$125  to  $5,100,  according  to  pedigree.  Prices  have  declined  ever  since 
the  great  sale  at  New  York  Mills,  Oneida  County,  New  York,  in  1873.  In 
order  to  compare  prices  'which  were  realized  at  that  sale  with  those  of 
a  recent  and  important  sale  of  Short-horns  in  this  country  at  Castle  Hill 
Cerne,  it  is  reported  to  me  that  at  the  former  sale  93  cows,  heifers,  and 
calves  realized  the  average  price  of  $3,764.78  each,  and  16  bulls  at 
$1,922.81  each,  while  at  the  latter  sale  32  cows  realized  $900  each  (aver- 
age), and  the  6  bulls  averaged  $1,372.  Seven  Dukes  and  Duchesses 
averaged  $3,625,  and  4  Oxfords  $1,105. 

The  soil  of  Yorkshire  is  for  the  most  part  black  and  brown. 

The  substratum  in  some  districts  is  clay,  in  others  rock  and  gravel. 

The  temperature  in  summer  is  62°  and  in  winter  37°,  the  mean 
during  the  year  being  49°. 

DEVON   CATTLE. 

This  breed  is  found  in  Devonshire  and  surrounding  comities,  and  also 
in  Ireland.  Little  is  known  respecting  its  origin  further  than  that  in 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  159 

the  earliest  records  it  can  be  traced  as  the  peculiar  breed  of  the  county 
from  which  it  takes  its  name.  They  belong  to  the  "  middle.-horned  vari- 
ety," and  in  the  opinion  of  some  are  the  most  suitable  for  paying  from 
an  all-round  point  of  view ;  they  are  very  quick  feeders,  and  the  high 
price  of  the  Devon  meat  shows  they  are  most  salable  animals — -just 
equal  to  the  Scotch — and  that  more  per  acre  can  be  made  from  Devons 
at  less  cost  and  care.  Those  reared  in  the  north  of. the  county  (Devon- 
shire) are  noted  for  their  rich  curly  coat,  but  this  they  frequently  lose 
when  taken  away  from  their  native  home.  They,  however,  bear  the 
change  of  climate  and  soil  well,  thrive  where  many  breeds  would  starve, 
and  rapidly  outstrip  most  others  when  they  have  plenty  of  good  past- 
ures. 

Those  in  the  south  of  the  county,  known  as  the  "South  Hams  breed," 
from  the  district  from  which  they  are  bred,  appear  to  be  a  mixture  of 
North  Devons  with  the  Guernsey  and  are  large-framed,  coarse-boned, 
good  milkers,  with  hardy  constitutions  and  large  offals.  According  to 
some  the  North  Devon  differs  from  the  South  Devon  in  everything 
which  is  necessary  to  constitute  a  good  animal.  Each  breed,  however, 
has  its  own  particular  merits,  each  answering  a  better  purpose  than 
the  other  according  to  the  climate,  soil,  situation,  and  other  circum- 
stances in  which  it  may  be  placed.  The  Devon  breed  is  most  valuable 
for  its  aptitude  to  fatten,  delicacy  of  touch,  and  the  choice  quality  of 
its  beautified,  veined,  and  marbled  beef,  the  especial  favorite  of  the 
butcher  (who  has  a  select  family  trade),  for  carrying  the  most  beef  in 
the  most  valuable  parts,  and  for  lightness  of  offal  they  stand  unrivaled, 
The  first  herd-book  was  issued  in  1851. 

Description. — The  general  form  of  the  Devon  is  very  graceful,  and 
exhibits  a  refined  organization  of  animal  qualities  not  surpassed  by 
any  breed.  The  head  should  be  small,  with  a  broad  indented  forehead, 
tapering  considerably  toward  the  nostrils ;  the  nose  of  a  creamy  white; 
the  jaws  clean  and  free  from  flesh  ;  the  eye  bright,  lively,  and  promi- 
nent, encircled  by  a  deep  orange-colored  ring;  the  ears  thin  j  the  horns 
of  the  female  long,  spreading,  and  gracefully  turned  up,  tapering  off 
towards  the  ends.  The  horns  of  the  male  are  thicker  set  and  more 
slightly  curved,  or  in  some  instances  standing  out  nearly  square,  with 
only  a  slight  inclination  upwards. 

The  color  of  the  true  Devon  is  a  pure  red. 


Animals. 


Average 
weight  at 
maturity. 


Cow cwt 

Bull : do. 

Ox -  do. 


Age  at  maturity :  Steers,  four  years ;  cows  for  breeding,  four  to  six  years. 

How  long  bred  pure :  Aboriginal  breed ;  special  attention  given  to  the  breed  since  1827. 

In  reference  to  the  milk  of  the  Devon  cows,  Col.  J.  J.  Davy  reports 
(1st  November,  1883) : 

A  friend  of  mine  last  week  tested  one  day's  milking  of  his  40  cows,  which  give 
47  gallons  milk,  which  made  61^  pounds' of  whole  milk  cheese.  His  neighbor's  40  cross- 
bred cows  gave  61  gallons  of  milk,  which  produced  only  5G£  pounds  of  whole  milk 
cheese.  All  the  cattle  were  similarly  kept. 

From  this  it  appears  that  40  pure-bred  Devons  yielded  470  pounds 
milk,  which  gives  61J  pounds  whole  milk  cheese,  while  40  cross-bred 


160 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


Devons  yielded  610  pounds  of  milk,  which  gives  5G£  pounds  whole  milk 
cheese. 


Product. 


Meat pounds 

Milk - - do.. 

Cheese  (yearly) do.. 


Quautity. 


1,232 

6,000 

350  to  500 


Labor:  Little. 

Method  of  housing :  In  pasture. 
Feeding :  Grass,  turnips,  &c.,  and  cake. 
Breeding :  Commence  at  two  years. 
Grasses :  Eye,  clover,  &c. 

-   The  following  are  some  of  the  recorded  weights  of  this  breed . 

Devon  steers  not  exceeding  3  years  old :  No.  1,  1,568  pounds  ;  No.  2, 
1,349  pounds;  No.  3,  1,294  pounds;  No.  4,  1,197  pounds;  No.  5,  1,383 
pounds  ;  No.  6,  1,285  pounds ;  No.  7,  1,323  pounds. 

Devon  cows:  No.  1,  5  years  old,  1,211  pounds ;  No.  2,  5  years  and  8 
months  old,  1,333  pounds  ;  No.  3,  5  years  1  month,  1,420  pounds. 

Devon  heifers  under  4  years  old :  No.  1,  1,276  pounds ;  No.  2,  1,153 
pounds ;  No.  3,  1,284  pounds  ;  No.  4,  1,019  pounds. 

The  price  is  various,  but  moderate  when  tjompared  with  those  of  other 
breeds. 

The  surface  of  North  Devon  (where  this  breed  is  found  in  the  greatest 
purity)  has  moorish,  mountainous  grounds  on  the  east  and  west,  but 
presents  over  the  most  parts  a  rich  display  of  varied  contour,  fertility, 
and  beauty. 

The  soils  are  mainly  pure  yellow  or  white  clays,  and  partially  clayey 
loam. 

The  substratum  is  old  red  sandstone  or  Devonian  rocks. 

The  temperature  in  summer  is  60°,  in  winter  39° ;  the  mean  during  the 
year  51°. 

SUSSEX  CATTLE. 

This  breed  is  to  be  found  principally  in  the  counties  of  Sussex,  Kent, 
and  Surrey. 

The  progress  made  in  recent  years  by  Sussex  stock  has  proved  it  to 
be  one  of  the  most  profitable  of  breeds.  They  "  make  meat "  very  rap- 
idly, perhaps  more  so  than  any  other  breed,  and  their  admirers  are 
pleased  to  state  that  this  was  clearly  demonstrated  in  1878  at  the  Smith- 
field  Club  cattle  show.  The  first  herd-book  was  published  in  1860.  The 
color  is  red. 


Animals. 

Average 
weight   at 
maturity. 

Cow  

14  to  17 

Bull  

do 

15  to  20 

Ox  

do 

17  to  20 

Age  at  maturity :  Two  to  four  years. 

Annual  average  pounds  of  milk:  About  3,000  pounds. 

The  annual  yield  of  butter  is  about  200  pounds. 
The  price  varies  according  to  quality.    Cows  from  $88  to  $97. 
The  county  of  Sussex  is  described  as  a  maritime  county.    It  contains 
but  few  hills,  none  of  which  obtain  1,000  feet  high. 


y 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  161 

The  soil  generally  compares  with  the  underlyiug  rocks,  and  varies 
from  sterile  sand  to  very  stiff  loam. 

The  substratum  is  lower  greensaud  rocks,  chalk,  and  lower  Eocene 
rocks. 

The  temperature  is  63°  in  summer,  38°  in  winter,  and  the  mean  tem- 
perature 50°. 

HEREFORD   CATTLE. 

This  breed  takes  its  name  from  the  county  where  they  were  first 
bred,  but  they  are  to  be  found  also  in  the  adjoining  counties.  They  are 
also  grazed  in  most  of  the  great  grazing  farms  of  the  midland  counties, 
and  there  are  also  breeding  herds  in  Scotland  and  Ireland.  The  Queen's 
celebrated  herd  is  kept  near  Windsor,  Berkshire.  This  breed  adapts 
itself  easily  to  the  severe  climate  of  the  north,  as  well  as  the  milder 
climate  of  the  south. 

In  America  some  are  to  be  found  in  ranches  6,047  feet  above  the  level 
of  the  sea,  and  no  better  proof  can  be  given  of  the  hardiness  of  the 
Hereford  s. 

Of  this  breed  the  Earl  of  Coventry  says : 

I  have  observed  Hereford  cattle  for  twenty  years,  but  I  only  commenced  forming  a 
herd  nine  years  ago.  During  that  period  I  have  tried  them  alongside  pedigree  Short- 
horns and  other  breeds  of  cattle,  and  I  am  so  satisfied  of  the  superiority  of  the  Here- 
ford breed  for  feeding  purposes  that  I  have  disposed  of  other  sorts.  They  are  a  hardy 
breed,  doing  well  out  of  doors  all  the  year  round.  Their  quality  of  meat  is  very  su- 
perior ;  they  have  less  "  rough  "  meat  about  them  than  the  Short-horn,  hence  first-class 
butchers  prefer  them  to  other  sorts.  (21st  October,  1883.) 

They  are  a  perfectly  pure  race  of  cattle  and  have  been  brought  to 
their  present  excellence  by  the  judicious  selection  of  both  male  and 
female  animals,  and  not  by  the  introduction  of  crosses  of  other  breeds. 
This  strictly  pure  blood  gives  them  the  great  value  they  have  for  im- 
proving other  breeds. 

Color. — The  distinguishing  color  is  red  with  a  white  face,  chest,  and 
belly,  white  flank  and  white  tip  to  the  tail ;  white  on  the  legs,  white 
mane,  and  often  white  line  along  the  back  The  red  with  white  face  is 
invariable,  arid  the  white  predominates,  more  or  less,  on  different  ani- 
mals. There  are  also  gray  Herefords,  but  these  are  now  confined  to  one 
or  two  breeds. 

The  date  of  the  first  herd-book  is  1845. 

Increase. — The  demand  for  exportation  principally  for  the  United 
States  and  Canada  has  increased  the  stock  of  the  district,  owing  to  more 
farmers  breeding. 


Animals. 

Average 
weight  at 
maturity 

Cow 

.  .......    ....      ..        ....  .....................  cwt 

Vi  to  14 

Hull 

...do.. 

36  to  20 

Ox 

do 

20  to  22 

Age  at  maturity  :  Three  years. 

11 010  long  bred  pure :  From  a  very  remote  period. 

A  nnual  average  pounds  of  milk:  Nine  thousand  five  hundred  poanda. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  butter :  Thirty  pounds  to  1  pound  of  butter. 

H.  Ex.  51 II 


162 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


A  good  cow  has  been  known  to  yield  14  pounds  of  butter  per  week  at 
grass  5  and  also  one  gave  55  pounds  of  milk,  yielding  2J  pounds  of  but- 
ter per  day,  but  this  is  of  rare  occurrence. 


Product. 


Quantity. 


Meat. 
Milk. 


.pounds 
....do. 


1,770 

9,500 


Labor:  Little  or  none. 

Mellwd  of  housing .-  Open  yards  daring  winter,  with  a  run  out  by  day ;  summer  out  in  rough  pasture. 

Feeding:  Hay,  straw,  and  roots  in  winter;  rough  pasture  in  summer. 

breeding :  Heifers  have  calves  at  two  and  a  half  years,  and  continue  to  breed  till  they  are  old. 

Grasses:  Clover,  rye-grass,  meadow,  fox-tail,  and- English  natural  grasses. 

The  following  is  a  record  of  the  live  weights  of  the  fatted  cattle  of 
this  breed : 


Oxen  (over 
3£  and  not 
over  4  years 
old). 

Steers  (over 
2A  and  not 
over  'i  J  . 
years  old). 

Heifers  (not 
over  4  years 
old). 

No  1 

......      .    pounds 

2,304 

'_>,  i:;r> 
y,  oiu 

2,500 

1,724 
1,862 

1,884 
1,778 

1,621 
1,764 
1,855 
1,  823 

No  2       .  .                       

do  ... 

No  3 

do 

No  4 

do      . 

No.  1  ox  (represented  in  the  sketch)  is  the  property  of  Mr.  J.  Price  and 
was  the  winner  of  the  Elkington  challenge  cup.  which  has  never  been 
done  except  by  this  Hereford.  He  is  the  true  type  with  the  markings 
for  the  Hereford. 

Price. — At  the  recent,  total  dispersion  by  auction  of  two  old  estab- 
lished herds  the  average  price  was  just  $375,  including  cows,  bulls, 
and  suckling  calves.  At  one  sale  the  leading  bull  sold  for  $4,139 ;  at 
the  other  sale  12  two-year-old  heifers  averaged  $652  each ;  the  highest 
priced  cow  was  $1,329.  There  were  117  animals  in  one  sale  and  91  in 
the  other. 

The  soil  of  Herefordshire  is  various,  from  clay  to  light  sandy  soil, 
much  of  which  is  of  inferior  quality. 

The  substratum  is  principally  limestone,  clay,  and  gravel. 

The  temperature  at  the  altitude  of  100  to  300  feet  above  sea-level  is 
in  summer  60°;  in  winter,  39°;  the  mean  during  the  year,  49°. 

RED-POLLED   CATTLE. 

This  breed  of  cattle  is  found  principally  in  the  counties  of  Norfolk 
and  Suffolk,  and  its  history  can  be  carried  far  back  into  the  last  cent- 
ury. Formerly  there  were  two  varieties,  and  it  is  only  since  the  year 
1840  that  the  amalgamation  of  the  two  varieties,  previously  known  as 
the  Norfolk  Polled  and  Suffolk  Polled,  has  taken  place,  and  the  breed  is 
at  present  known  as  the  Suffolk  and  Norfolk  Polled.  Many  of  the  old 
Suffolk  Polled  cattle  were  much  more  massive  than  the  Norfolk,  and 
this  characteristic  is  yet  in  evidence.  They  could  easily  be  picked  out 
from  a  collection  by  the  comparative  coarseness  at  the  head,  a  difference 
which  is  now  but  seldom  manifest.  In  other  points  there  were  few  di- 
vergencies in  character  between  the  two  varieties. 


Jf       : 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  1G3 

Red-Polled  cattle  are  found  to  lay  on  flesli  rapidly  on  pasture  of  the 
poorest  quality  where  other  breeds  would  require  an  additional  supply 
of  richer  food.  The  dry  temperature  of  their  native  home  and  the  poor 
pasture  seein  more  particularly  to  have  their  effect  on  the  size  of  the 
stock. 

As  graceful  as  the  Devon,  the  Eed-Polled  has  the  additional  advan- 
tage of  being  hornless,  in  itself  no  little  gain  where  horses  also  run  in 
the  pastures,  or  where  the  stock  sent  to  market  have  to  make  a  long 
journey  by  railway,  boat,  or  road. 

The  first  herd-book  was  issued  in  1874. 

The  color  and  description  of  the  breed,  agreed  upon  by  breeders  in  the 
autumn  of  1873 : 

The  color  red,  but  tlio  udder  may  be  white.  The  extension  of  the  white  of  the 
udder  a  few  inches  along  the  inside  of  the  flank,  or  a  small  white  spot  or  mark  on  the 
under  part  of  the  belly  by  the  milk  veins,  shall  not  be  held  to  disqualify  an  animal 
whose  sire  and  dam  form  part  of  an  established  herd  of  the  breed,  or  answer  all  other 
essentials  of  the  standard  description. 

Form. — There  should  be  no  horns,  slugs,  or  abortive  horns. 

The  following  are  the  points  for  a  superior  animal : 

Color. — A  deep  red  with  udder  of  the  same  color,  but  the  tip  of  the 
tail  may  be  white,  nose  not  dark  or  cloudy. 

Form.— A  neat  head  and  throat,  a  full  eye,  a  tuft  or  crest  of  hair 
should  hang  over  the  forehead ;  the  frontal  bones  should  begin  to  con- 
tract a  little  above  the  eye  and  should  terminate  in  a  comparatively 
narrow  prominence  at  the  summit  of  the  head.  In  all  other  particulars 
the  commonly  accepted  points  of  a  superior  animal  are  taken  as  apply- 
ing to  Eed-Polled  cattle.  Clean,  thin,  short  legs;  a  clean  throat  with 
little  dewlap;  a  springing  rib,  with  large  carcass;  a  large  udder,  loose 
and  creased  when  empty;  milk  veins  very  large  and  rising  in  knotted 
puffs  to  the  eye,  are  points  in  a  good  Ked-Polled  cow. 


Animals. 

Average 
weight   at 
maturity. 

Cow...  

«vwi 

12 

Bull 

do 

16 

Ox  

do 

14 

Age  at  maturity  :t  Four  years. 

How  long  bred  pure:  Ono  hundred  years. 

Annual  average  pounds  of  milk :  11,250  pounds. 

Milfc  to  pounds  of  butter :  35  pounds  to  1  pound  butter. 


Product. 

Quantity. 

Meat... 

1  072 

Milk  

.  .  do 

11  250 

Chetso  

do 

336 

Labor:  Little. 

Method  of  housing :  In  pasture. 

Feeding:  Grass,  carrots,  and  beet  roots,  turnips  and  cake. 

Breeding :  Commence  at  two  years. 

Grasses:  Clover  and  rj e  grass ;  no  timothy. 


161 


CATTLE    AN13    JDAlitY    FARMING. 


WEIGHTS  OF  DEVON  CATTLE. — The  following  are  some  of  tlio  weights 
of  live  cattle  of  this  breed,  as  recorded  by  Mr.  Euren: 


tfo. 

Age. 

Weight. 

Length 
from 
point  to 
shoulder. 

Total 
length. 

Girth. 

1. 

2.      . 

g 

Years. 

9 
6 

ri 

Pounds. 
2,  093 
],8}4 

]     o'5') 

Ft.  In. 
5      2 
4      f) 
4      G 

Ft.  In. 

1    10 
0      9 

Ft.  In. 

7    10 
G      9 
G      4 

4 

6 

]'  4H6 

4    11 

G      8 

5 

c 

1  497 

5      0 

G      7 

6 

3 

3,281 

7 

3 

]   354 

g 

7 

]   514 

5      0 

G      8 

Q 

g 

]  (>")') 

5      2 

0      G 

10 

3 

1  330 

11 

G 

1  472 

12 

9 

1  (540 

13.       . 
14.       . 
15.       . 

? 

3 

I,8.1fl 
l|fl87 

1,  434 

4      8 
4      7 
4    1L 

G      7 

""G  "io" 

G      9 

(i      7 
7      1 

Also  average  daily  yield  of  milk  111  pounds: 


C 

. 

- 

No. 

Date  of  calving. 

£ 

<u 

I 

o 

,£2 

5 

6 

a 

3 

h 

i 

,d 

, 

J 

1 

3, 
g 

S 

i 

h» 

1 

S 

I 

0 

H 

1 

Fourth  calf  August  °8 

50 

48 

47 

45 

43 

42 

40 

33 

20 

2  

Second  calf  September  7  

51 

50 

49 

4G 

431 

44 

40 

3 

Third  cnlt'  December  17 

4°J 

40) 

40~ 

38 

3  j 

4  

Third  calf  January  4  ................ 

47i 

45 

43 

42 

40 

Another  test  gave  a  daily  average  for  live  months  of  51.30  pounds; 
for  six  months,  50.1  pounds 5  for  seven  months,  48. 7G  pounds. 

Total  from  September  1  to  March  31,  inclusive,  10,341  pounds;  to 
April  30,  11,196  pounds. 

Decrease  of  stock. — This  has  in  a  great  measure  arisen  from  the  fact 
of  rinderpest  having  a  few  years  ago  been  fatal  to  a  large  proportion  of 
the  cattle  then  in  noteworthy  herds.  Fashion  also  has  had  a  marked 
efifcct.  Short-horns  and  Devons  were  at  one  time  in  such  favor  that 
polled  cattle  were  despised  and  their  merits  ignored.  There  is,  how- 
ever, at  present  a  marked  progress  made  in  the  breed;  shortness  of 
numbers  is  being  in  some  measure  compensated  for,  noblemen  and 
gentlemen  now  sparing  no  pains  to  make  the  breed  a  success. 

Prices  are  from  $195  upwards,  according  to  pedigree. 

The  soil  of  Norfolk  may  be  divided  into  three  classes:  Light  sands 
of  various  qualities,  low  alluvial  clays  and  loams,  and  loams  of  various 
qualities,  chiefly  light  incumbent  on  a  marly  clay.  Suffolk  is  nearly 
covered  by  diluvial  beds. 

The  surface  is  gently  undulating  except  along  the  northwest  and 
some  parts  of  the  northeast  border,  where  it  subsides  into  low,  marshy 
levels. 

The  temperature  of  this  part  of  England  is  62  degrees  in  summer, 
37  degrees  in  winter,  and  the  mean  during  the  year  49  degrees.  The 
climate  is  somewhat  colder  than  that  of  the  southern  and  western 
counties. 

THE  ABERDEEN  OR  POLLED  ANGUS  CATTLE. 

This  breed  is  principally  to  be  found  in  the  northeastern  counties  of 
Scotland,  Forfar  and  Aberdeen  being  the  chief  centers,  and  ithas  existed 


sS 

en 

O     >. 


2      C 


a    C 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  165 

there  from  time  immemorial,  but  it  was  only  in  the  year  1808  that  some 
attention  was  given  to  improve  it. 

The  first  herd-book  came  out  in  1862,  and  since  that  time  the  breed 
has  greatly  improved  and  has  become  somewhat  famous  for  the  excellent 
quality  of  its  beef,  which,  according  to  some  admirers,  stands  pre-emi- 
nently forward,  both  to  the  farmer  and  butcher,  as  being  hardy  and 
healthy,  good  milkers  both  in  quantity  and  quality,  easily  fed,  good 
beef  producers,  coming  early  to  maturity,  and  highly  prized  by  butchers. 
The  color  is  black. 

The  description  of  a  fine  type  of  a  Polled  Angus  is :  The  head  of  a 
male  should  not  be  large,  but  should  be  handsome  and  neatly  set  on. 
The  muzzle  should  be  fine,  the  nostrils  of  only  moderate  length,  the 
eyes  mild,  large,  and  expressive ;  the  poll  high,  the  ears  of  fair  size, 
lively,  and  well  covered  with  hair,  the  throat  clean,  with  no  devel- 
opment of  skin  and  flesh  beneath  the  jaws,  which  should  not  be  heavy, 
the  neck  pretty  long,  clean,  and  rising  from  the  head  to  the  shoulder  top 
and  surmounted  by  a  moderate  "  crest,"  which  contributes  to  masculine 
appearance,  a  desirable  point  in  a  bull.  The  neck  should  pass  neatly 
and  evenly  into  the  body,  with  full  neck  vein.  The  shoulder  blades 
should  lie  well  back  wards,  fitting  neatly  into  thebody,  and  not  lying  awk- 
wardly outside  it;  they  should  show  no  undue  prominence  on  the  shoulder 
top,  on  the  points,  or  at  the  elbow.  The  chest  should  be  wide  and  deep, 
the  bosom  should  stand  well  forward  between  the  fore-legs,  and  under- 
neath should  be  well  covered  with  flesh  and  fat.  The  crops  should  be 
full  and  level,  with  no  falling  off  behind  them  ;  the  ribs  well  sprung, 
neatly  joined  to  the  crops  and  loins  ;  the  back  level  and  broad,  the  loins 
broad  and  strong,  the  hook-bones  not  too  wide,  narrower  than  in  an 
average  Short-horn;  the  quarters  long,  even,  and rounded;  the  tail  should 
come  neatly  out  of  the  body,  not  too  far  up  the  back  and  not  higher  at 
the  root  than  the  line  of  the  back. 

The  above  description  refers  more  correctly  to  bulls  than  to  cows;  the 
latter,  of  course,  differ  considerably  in  character ;  the  head  is  much  finer, 
the  neck  thinner  and  cleaner,  with  no  "crest ;  "  the  shoulder  top  sharper, 
the  bone  altogether  finer,  the  skin  not  quite  so  thick ;  the  udder  large, 
and  milk  vessels  large  and  well  defined. 


Animals. 

Average 
•weight  at 
maturity. 

Cow 

cwt 

14 

Bull  

do 

18 

Ox  

do... 

15  to  16 

Age  at  maturity:  Three  years. 

How  long  bred  pure :  Seventy  years. 

Annual  average  pounds  of  milk:  0,000  pounds. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  butter :  27  pounds  to  1  pound  of  butter. 


Product. 


Quantity. 


Moat pounds. 

Milk :..do... 


1,456 
9,000 


Labor:  Little. 

Method  of  housing :  In  covered  courts  and  stalled  in  winter,  pastures  in  summer. 

Feeding  :  Grass,  turnips,  straw,  and  cake. 

Breeding :  Two  years  of  age. 

Grasses :  Clover  and  rye  grasses. 


1.6(5  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

Weight. — The  following  are  some  of  the  weights  of  fatted  cattle  of  this 
breed :  Steers  not  exceeding  four  years  old,  No.  1,  2,268  pounds  ;  No.  2, 
2,0<)5  pounds;  No.  3, 1,974  pounds;  No.  4,  cow,  three  years  and  eight 
months,  1,870  pounds;  No.  5,  three  years,  1,710  pounds.  Cattle  intended 
for  the  London  Christmas  market  are  kept  till  three  or  four  years  old, 
and  1,232  pounds  to  1,456  pounds  (dead  weights)  are  common  weights. 

There  is  no  apparent  scarcity  of  stock. 

Price. — The  average  price  realized  at  recent  sales  has  been  $180,  and 
the  highest  price  that  has  been  paid  for  a  polled  animal  was  $1,385  in 
1880. 

The  climate  of  the  county  of  Aberdeen  is  described  as  on  the  whole 
mild,  the  winters  not  being  so  cold  nor  the  summer  so  mild  or  so  long 
as  the  southern  counties. 

The  temperature  is  57°  in  summer,  36°  in  winter,  and  the  mean  dur- 
ing the  year  45°. 

The  soil  on  the  uplands  is  very  poor  and  thin,  while  the  low-lying 
land  has  various  soils,  but  most  of  it  naturally  poor  and  churlish,  but 
has  by  judicious  cultivation  been  converted  into  fine  mold.  Heaths 
and  coarse,  stiff  clays  are  common  in  the  higher  districts,  and  light  sands 
and  fine  clay  in  the  valleys. 

WELSH  CATTLE. 

There  are  two  breeds  of  cattle  in  Wales.  The  North  Wales  breed  is 
found  in  greatest  perfection  in  Anglesea  and  Caernarvonshire.  The 
South  Wales  breed  is  called  the  "  Castle  Martin  »  and  the  animals  are 
very  big,  large  bones  and  coarse,  but  they  are  not  in  favor  in  the  north 
of  the  principality.  The  first  herd-book  for  North  Wales  was  published 
last  year  (1883),  and  great  care  and  attention  is  now  being  given  to  the 
breed. 

Color. — Both  breeds  are  black,  producing  occasionally  specimens  of 
dun-colored  and  red.  Characteristic  points  require  that  bulls  should 
have  white  testicles  and  the  cows  white  udders. 

Age  at  maturity,  3J  years. 

Live  weight  (average)  at  maturity  is,  cow,  13  to  14  cwt,  bull,  15  to  18 
cwt.,  and  the  ox  13  to  15  cwt. 

The  following  are  the  weights  of  three  oxen  under  four  years  of  age : 
No.  1,  1,870  pounds;  No.  2,  1,953  pounds,  and  No.  3,  2,108  pounds. 
The  ox  whose  photograph  is  given  herewith  weighs  actually  2,404 
pounds  and  won  the  chief  prize,  "the  breed  cup"  at  Smithfield  cattle 
show,  10th  December,  1883. 

Milk  yield  from  a  good  cow  is  about  4,000  pounds  annually  ;  butter 
yield  is  about  300  pounds  annually;  no  cheese  is  made. 

Price. — The  average  price  for  good  oxen  is  from  $88  to  $98. 

The  Isle  of  Anglesea  (where  this  breed  is  found  pure)  is  described  as 
being  quite  devoid  of  mountains  or  glens,  flat  in  the  south  and  center 
and  only  moderate  hills  on  the  north.  The  climate  is  mild  but  foggy, 
the  temperature  being  59°  in  summer,  42°  in  winter,  and  the  mean 
during  the  year  50°.  The  soils  are  chiefly  sandy  loam,  a  stiff  reddish 
earth,  and  blackish  vegetable  mold.  The  rocks  are  Cambrian,  Lower 
Silurian,  Lower  Carboniferous,  limestone  and  shale,  granite,  Permian 
conglomerate,  sandstone,  and  red  marl. 

THE  JERSEY  CATTLE. 

Jersey  is  justly  celebrated  for  its  breed  of  cattle,  which  goes  under 
the  name  of  the  Alderney  breed.  There  are  about  12,000  cattle  on  this 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM. 


167 


small  island,  which  is  only  12  miles  long  by  6  miles  broad,  and,  what  ia 
most  remarkable,  it  exports  every  year  above  2,000  head  of  cattle. 

The  Jersey  cow  is  specially  adapted  for  the  dairy,  yielding  a  quality 
of  milk  so  rich  that  no  other  can  be  compared  to  it.  But  the  specialty 
is  butter,  and  in  this  it  stands  unrivaled  for  quality  and  profit. 

Description.— The  head  should  be  small,  slender,  and  lengthy  from 
the  eye  to  nose ;  the  horns  thin  and  open,  not  cramped  or  too  curly ; 
the  eye  full  but  not  too  prominent ;  the  ear  lengthy  and  broad  and  well 
friuged  with  hair;  a  broad  muzzle  should  be  avoided;  the  neck  should 
be  long,  flat,  and  narrow,  with  a  tendency  to  rise  at  the  withers,  and 
breadth  behind  the  arm  to  allow  of  a  full  expansion  of  the  lungs,  the 
chest  being  rather  deep  than  broad.  The  flat-sided  cow  is  more  espe- 
cially to  be  chosen  as  a  milker;  the  hips  should  be  wide,  rugged,  and 
high,  and  the  haunches  wide  and  large,  drooping  toward  the  tail ;  the 
thigh  long  and  lean  from  hip  to  hock,  the  veins  being  prominent  and 
easily  felt ;  the  legs  slender  with  flat  bone  and  small,  flat  feet,  the 
hinder  ones  having  good  width  between,  to  afford  room  for  the  udder ; 
a  long  and  thin  tail  is  a  great  point  in  breeding. 

This  is  a  general  description  of  the  breed,  but  the  Jersey  Agricultural 
Society  have  a  standard  of  points  by  which  they  judge  an  animal. 

Color. — They  are  gray-fawn  and  white,  yellow-fawn  and  white,  gray- 
dun  and  white,  gray  and  white,  silver-gray  dun,  cream-color  fawn,  &c. 


Animals. 

Average 
weight    at 
maturity. 

8 

12 

Ox..                                                                                                                      

Bare. 

Age  at  maturity :  Four  to  five  years. 

How  long  bred  pin\> :  Five  jiumlred  years. 

Annual  average  jjounds  of  milk :  Seven  thousand. 

MUk  to  pounds  of  butter :  Twenty  pounds  to  1  pound  butter. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  cheese :  None  made. 


Product. 


Quantity. 


Meat pounds. 

Milk <lo... 

Cheese 


None. 


750 
7,000 


Labor :  Little  or  none. 

Method  of  housing  :  llonsod  at  uiglit  and  tethered  by  day. 

Feeding:  Grass,  timiins,  &c. 

Breeding:  Commence  nt  abont sixteen  months. 

Grasses :  Trefoil.  Lurerue,  clover,  rye. 


The  following  are, some  of  the  famous  yields  of  Jerseys  as  published 
by  Mr.  E.  P.  Fowler,  of  Southampton : 

Yield  of  I  utter  per  week  when  in  full  flow. 


^Number. 

Quantity. 

Xumber. 

Quantity. 

1... 

Lbg.  oz. 
28  0 

g 

Lbi.  oz. 
18  0 

2  

20  13 

9              ^ 

17  9 

3  

20  0 

10 

17  0 

4  

19  8 

11 

16  12 

5  

19  0 

12 

16  0 

0  

18  12 

13 

15  18 

7 

18  4 

14 

14  0 

Cream  test,  32  degrees. 


168  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Decrease  of  stock.— -Einderpest  or  foot  and  mouth  disease  has  never 
appeared  in  the  island.  The  decrease  is  owing  to  the  great  number 
exported  of  late  years  to  America,  where  the  breed  is  highly  prized. 

Price. — From  $200  to  some  thousands,  according  to  pedigree. 

Topography. — The  surface  of  the  island  is  everywhere  undulating. 
The  high  laud  consists,  for  the  most  part,  of  granite  rocks  ;  the  south- 
ern part,  of  a  mass  of  schistose  rocks  incumbent  upon  granite. 

Temperature. — The  climate  of  Jersey  from  its  insular  situation  is 
milder  than  that  of  other  places  under  the  same  latitude,  and  the  mean 
temperature,  which  is  53°,  is  higher  than  that  of  any  part  of  England. 
In  summer  it  is  61°,  and  in  winter  42°. 

AYRSHIRE   CATTLE. 

This  breed  is  found  in  Ayrshire,  Scotland  (whence  it  derives  its  name), 
and  the  adjacent  portion  of  the  Lowlands.  It  is  an  admirable  breed  of 
milch  cattle,  rather  under  the  middle  size,  but  hardy,  and  yielding  ex- 
cellent milk  in  large  quantities. 

Description  and  color. — The  improved  cow  has  the  head  small,  but 
rather  long  and  narrow  at  the  nozzle,  though  the  space  between  the 
roots  of  the  horns  is  considerable;  the  horns  are  small  and  crooked;  the 
eye  is  clear  and  lively ;  the  neck  long  and  slender  and  almost  destitute 
of  a  dewlap ;  the  shoulders  are  thin  and  the  forequarters  generally  light; 
the  back  is  straight  and  broad  behind,  especially  across  the  hips,  which 
are  roomy ;  the  tail  is  long  and  thin  ;  the  carcass  is  deep  ;  the  udder 
capacious  and  square  ;  the  milk  vein  large  and  prominent ;  the  limbs 
are  small  and  short,  but  well  knit ;  the  thighs  are  thin ;  the  skin  is  rather 
thin,  but  loose  and  soft  and  covered  with  short  hair  ;  the  general  figure, 
though  small,  is  well  proportioned;  the  prevailing  color  is  mottled  red 
and  white. 


Product. 

Weight. 

pounds 

9  000 

do  ... 

85 

,  do.... 

16 

Average  weight  at  maturity  : 
Cow 

...cwt  . 

12 

Utili  ..  »  

do.... 

16. 

Ox 

.  do  ... 

18 

Afje  a,t  maturity :  Four  to  five  years. 
How  long  bred  pure :  One  hundred  years. 

Product. — A  good  cow  will  yield  from  9,000  to  10,000  pounds  milk. 
This  milk  is  calculated  to  return  about  250  pounds  butter  or  500  pounds 
cheese  per  year.  , 

Treatment. — The  cows  are  treated  by  enterprising  farmers  as  fol- 
lows: They  are  kept  constantly  in  the  byre  (or  shed)  till  the  grass 
has  risen  to  afford  them  a  full  bite.  Many  put  them  out  every  good 
day  through  the  winter  and  spring,  but  they  poach  the  ground  with 
their  feet  and  rip  up  the  young  grass  as  it  begins  to  spring,  which, 
as  they  have  not  a  full  meal,  injures  the  cattle.  Whenever  the  weather 
becomes  dry  and  hot  the  cows  are  fed  on  cut  grass  in  the  byre  from  0 
in  the  morning  to  G  in  the  evening  and  turned  out  to  pasture  the  other 
hours;  when  rain  comes  the  house  feeding  is  discontinued;  when  pas- 
ture grass  begins  to  fail  in  harvest  they  icceive  a  supply  of  the  second 
growth  of  clover,  and  afterwards  of  turnips  strewed  over  the  pasture 
ground ;  when  the  weather  becomes  stormy  in  the  fall  of  the  year  tko 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  109 

cows  are  kept  in  the  byre  during  the  night,  and  in  a  short  time  after- 
wards both  night  and  day ;  they  are  then  fed  on  oat  straw  and  turnips; 
they  continue  to  yield  a  considerable  quantity  of  uiilk  for  some  time ; 
part  of  the  turnip  crop  is  eaten  at  the  end  of  harvest  and  beginning  of 
winter  to  protract  the  milk,  and  part  is  stored  up  for  green  food  during 
the  winter;  after  this  store  is  exhausted  the  " Swedish"  turnip  and 
potatoes  are  used  along  with  any  fodder  till  the  grass  can  support  the 
cows.  Chaff,  oats,  and  potatoes  are  boiled  for  the  cows  after  calving, 
and  they  are  generally  fed  on  rye  grass  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
spring. 

Price. — The  average  price  for  good  cows  is  from  8122  to  $146. 

The  county  of  Ayrshire  is  for  the  most  part  plain  open  country, 
neither  hilly  nor  level,  but  rising  from  the  shore  in  a  gradual  easy  ac- 
clivity till  it  terminates  in  mountains  on  the  southeast,  and  moorish 
hills  on  eastern  boundaries.  No  part  can  be  termed  level,  for  the  sur- 
face abounds  with  numerous  swells  and  roundish  hills  which  facilitate 
the  escape  of  moisture  and  promote  ventilation. 

Climate. — For  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  year  the  wind  blows  from 
the  southwest,  and  the  rains  are  often  copious  and  sometimes  of  long 
duration.  The  temperature  is  59°  in  summer,  37°  in  winter,  and  the 
mean  during  the  year  47°. 

Soils. — Clay,  or  argillaceous  earth,  is  the  most  common.  This  species 
is  so  tenacious  that  it  can  only  be  plowed  in  a  state  of  moisture,  but  by 
application  of  lime  and  other  manure  it  is  convertible  into  fine  rich  loam, 
thousands  of  acres  having  been  thus  treated.  Loam  of  alluvial  forma- 
tion is  found  in  holms  on  the  sides  of  rivers  and  other  low  situations. 
Tho  substratum  in  the  higher  parts  of  the  county  abound  in  unmixed 
granite,  while  also  is  found  breccia  -whins-tone,  greenstone,  and  red 
sandstone. 

EXPORTATION  OF  BRITISH  CATTLE   TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

All  of  the  breeds  here  treated  are  said  to  have  greatly  improved  in 
the  United  States,  where  the  conditions  of  climate  and  soil  have  been 
favorable. 

The  best  animals  to  import  are  the  pure  breeds,  and  choice  should  bo 
made  according  to  the  needs  and  fancy  of  the  importer  and  the  circum- 
stances of  the  climate,  &c.,,  of  his  grazing  lands. 

For  dairy  purposes,  having  regard  to  cost  of  keeping,  the  preference 
seems  to  be  for  the  Alderney,  Ayrshire,  and  Welsh,  while  the  Short- 
horn and  Bed-Polled  excel  both  for  milk  and  beef-producing  qualities. 
As  a  general  farm  stock  the  Devon,  Hereford,  Polled,  Aberdeen  or 
Angus,  and  Sussex  are  pre-eminently  admired  for  beauty,  size,  and  flesh- 
making  qualities. 

As  to  the  best  methods,  best  routes,  and  cost  of  transportation,  Mr. 
De  la  Perrelle  writes  as  follows  : 

The  loss  through,  mortality,  an  important  item,  I  have  found  can  be  overcome  by 
profiting  by  the  experience  of  practical  shippers.  My  experience,  which  has  extended 
over. many  years,  has  proved  that  personal  and  practical  attention  is  amply  repaid 
from  the  fact  that  the  loss  of  cattle  shipped  by  me  has  not  exceeded  1  per  cent.  Many 
shippers  find,  therefore,  difficulty  to  obtain  marine  insurance,  and  the  rates  rule  high 
from  the  fact  of  their  not  attending  and  insisting  upon  the  details  of  properly  stall- 
ing cattie  on  board  steamers,  cheapness  in  this  particular  being  false  economy. 

As  to  the  route,  some  are  shipped  from  London,  Southampton,  Bristol  Channel,  Liver- 
pool, and  Glasgow,  but  I  would  give  the  preference  to  Liverpool,  as  I  consider  it  oilers 
greater  facilities  for  shipping  than  any  other  port.  Tho  freight  per  head  is  from  $25 
to  £35,  according  to  destination,  but  I  ship  sometimes  at  a  much  lower  rate  when  there 
is  a  largo  number  of  animals  to  ship,  and  Ireckonthe  cost  of  food  en  route  for  pedigree 
stock  to  be  about  36  cents  per  day.  • 


170  CATTLE    AND    DAIEY    FARMING. 

WHERE  TO  PURCHASE  BRITISH  CATTLE. 

The  following  may  be  of  interest  to  intending  purchasers  as  showing 
the  places  and  dates  where  most  of  the  animals  of  the  reported  breeds 
may  be  seen  and  purchased : 

West  Highland  and  Scotch  cattle  generally  are  shown  in  large  num- 
bers at  Falkirk  trysts  (or  fairs)  second  Monday  in  September  and  Oc- 
tober, when  from '20,000  to  30,000  are  shown  5  at  Muir  of  Orel  fairg, 
Inverness,  and  all  Scotch  fairs  5  also  at  Newcastle  October  fairs ;  at 
Stagshaw,  in  the  same  county;  at  Brough  Hill,  Westmoreland;  at  the 
Norwich  markets,  and  at  Barnet  fair  on  the  first  week  in  September, 
and  Worthampton  August  2G. 

Galloways  are  met  with  at  all  the  fairs  in  south  and  west  of  Scotland ; 
at  Carlisle,  Penrith,  Eosley  Hill  on  Whit  Monday,  Brough  Hill,  and 
Newcastle  fairs. 

Shorthorns:  The  fairs  at  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  Durham,  Darlington, 
Yarm  in  Yorkshire  (October  19  and  20),  Northallerton,  Northampton, 
Boston  in  Lincolnshire,  Stow-on-the-Wold,  Gloucestershire  are  remark- 
able in  their  several  districts  for  this  breed.  Of  these  Newcastle,  Dar- 
lington, and  Yarm  are  probably  the  best. 

Herefords :  The  best  shows  of  this  stock  are  at  the  fairs  in  Hereford- 
shire in  the  month  of  October  at  the  great  market  in  Hereford  itself, 
October  20 ;  at  Leominster  in  March  and  October  27 ;  at  the  fairs  in 
Monmouth  and  in  Eoss  great  numbers  of  well-bred  animals  are  shown. 
Among  the  other  fairs  those  of  Shrewsbury,  Wolverhampton,  Birming- 
ham, Gloucester,  and  Barnet  in  Hertfordshire,  are  noteworthy. 

Devons  are  shown  in  their  own  county  at  South  Molton,  Saturday 
after  February  13 :  Crediton,  Saturday  before  last  Wednesday  in  April ; 
Sampford-Peveril,  the  following  Monday ;  Exeter,  February  10,  May  19, 
July  21,  December  8 ;  North  Molton,  third  Wednesday  in  May  and  last 
Wednesday  in  October;  at  Barnet  fair,  first  week  in  September;  Bough- 
ton  Green,  Northampton,  June  24,  25,  and  26. 

Sussex  cattle  are  rarely  met  with  out  of  their  own  county  and  its 
neighborhood  (Lewis,  May  6). 

Channel  Islands :  One  of  the  best  fairs  for  this  stock  (Jerseys)  is 
Southampton,  Trinity  Monday. 

Ayrshires  are  met  with  in  abundance  at  the  fairs  in  the  southwestern 
counties  of  Scotland,  the  principal  probaMy  being  Ayr  (last  Friday  in 
April)  for  cows,  barren  and  in  calf,  and  young  cattle. 

I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  herewith  tabulated  summary  of  the 
special  points  of  information  called  for  by  the  Department's  form  sent 
me. 

STEPHEN  B.  PACKARD, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Liverpool,  January  28,  1885. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  171 

Tabulated  summary  of  the  special  breeds  of  British  cattle  reported  by  Consul  Packard, 


Name  of  breed. 

Annual 
average 
pounds 
of 
milk. 

Milk 
to 
pounds 
of 
butter. 

Milk 
to 
pounds 
of 
cheese. 

Great  Britain. 

Live  weight. 

Ago 
at  ma- 
turity. 

Habitat. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

11,  500 
G,  000 
3,  000 
9,  500 
11,250 
9,  000 
4,000 
7,000 
9,000 

40 

Civt. 
16  to  18 
9 
14  to  17 
12  to  14 
12 
14 
13  to  14 
8 
12 

Cwt, 
18  to  20 
12 
15  to  20 
1G  to  20 
1G 
18 
15  to  18 
12 
16 

Ctvt. 
20  to  22 
11 
17  to  20 
20  to  22 
14 
15  to  16 
13  to  15 
Rare. 
18 

Years. 
3 
(*) 

2  to  4 
3 
4 
3 

4  to  5 
4  to  5 

Sussex  

Hereford  

30 

27 
13 
20 
35 

Hereford   &c 

Red  Tolled          .   .. 

Norfolk  and  Suffolk.. 
Forfarnnd  Aberdeen. 
North  Wales 

Angus  or  Aberdeen. 
Welsh           

Ayrshire 

1G 

Ayrshire 

*  Steers,  4  years ;  cows  for  breeding  purposes,  4  to  6  years. 


Name  of  breed. 

Color. 

How  long  bred 

pure. 

Product.     . 

Labor. 

Meat. 

Milk. 

Cheese. 

Shorthorn  

Eoan,  white,  red  and 
white,  red. 
Red 

Since  1780  
Since  1827  

Little. 
..do... 

Lbs. 

f  ds  of  gross 
weight. 
1,232 

Lbs. 
11,  500 

6,000 
3,000 
9,500 

11,  250 
9,000 
4  000 

EM. 

Devon 

350  to  500 

....do  

Hereford  

Red  and  wh 
Rft/1 

ite  

From  a  remote 
period. 
One   hundred 

years. 
From  a  remote 
period. 

Little. 
..do... 
..do... 

1,770 
1,072 
1,456 

Eed  Tolled 

336 

Angus  or  Aberdeen  . 
Welsh  

B 
B 
G 
M 

Lack  

ack,  and  occasion- 
ally dun  and  red. 
ray,   fawn,   and 
white,  and  various, 
ottledred  raid  white. 

Jersey  

Five  hundred 
years. 
One   hundred 

years. 

Little. 

750 

7,000 
9,000 

500 

District. 

Mean 
tempera- 
ture. 

Summer. 

Winter. 

Soil. 

Alluvial 

Loam. 

Clay.          Sandy,  &c. 

Yorkshire    ......... 

o 
49 

51 

50 
49 
49 
45 

50 

53 
47 

o 
G> 

GO 

C3 

GO 
G2 

57 

59 

Gl 
59 

°S7 

39 

38 
39 
37 
35 

42 

42 
IT 

Loan 
C)a 

lO£ 
Stiff 

id. 

nd  and  va- 

ious. 
tidy  loam, 
ke. 

7oy 
m. 
loan 

Yellow  and 
white  clay, 
to  sterile  sand 
Clay  to  light  sai 
Clay  
...  do  Sa 

Sussex  

Herefordshire  
Norfolk  and  Suffolk  
Forfarshiro  and  Aber- 
deenshire. 
North  Wales  

Alluvial. 

Loam  

i 
Sa 

<f 

Ayrshire 

Alluvial. 



Clay  

172  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Talulatcd  summary  of  tlie  special  breeds  of  British  cattle,  #c. — Continued. 


District. 

Limestone. 

Sandstone. 

Granite. 

Clay. 

Gravel,  tc. 

Cultivated  grasses. 

Clover. 

Rye,   grasa, 
&c. 

Old  red  sand- 
stone. 
..  do  



Clay  .  . 

Gravel.  .. 

Clover 
..do  ... 

Eye. 
Eye,  &c. 

Do. 
Do. 

Eye,  trefoil, 
and  lucera. 

Lower  g 
Limestone  . 

reensand,  chalk 

and  lowci 

Eocene 

Clay.. 

rockg. 
Gravel.  .  - 

Clover 
do 

Norfolk  and  Suffolk  . 

Limestone  . 

Sandstone  

Granite. 
Granite, 
«fec. 

Clover 

Old  red  sand- 
stone. 

District. 

Method  of  housing. 

Feeding. 

Preceding. 

Young  stock  are  housed  from 

Fed  iu  the  morning  with  hav, 

At  2i  years. 

Devonshire  

November  to  March.    Fat 
nnd  milch  cows  are  housed 
at  night  from  Octolicr  to 
May. 
In  pasture  
Open  yards  do  fin"1  winter 

roots,  and    oi]-ca!;c,    and 
Indian  meal,  then  turned 
into  pastures. 

Grass,  turnips,  and  oil-cake.. 
Uav  straw    roots  iu  winter, 

At  2  years. 
At  2^  years. 

Norfolk  and  Suffolk 

with  a   run  out   by  day. 
Summer,  out  iu  rough  pas- 
ture. 

pastures  iu  summer. 
Grass  carrots  beet-root  tur- 

At 2  yoirs. 

Forfarshire  and  Abcr- 
deeushire. 

In  covered  courts.    Stalled 
in    winter.      Pastures    in 
summer. 
Housed  at  ni(Tht  and  tethered 

nips,  and  cake. 
Grasses  turnips,  straw,  and 
cake. 

Grass  turnips  &c 

Do. 
At  10  months 

Ayrsliiro    

by  day. 
(See  report.) 

HEREFORD  CATTLE. 

REPORT  OF  CONSUL  LATHROP,  OF  BRISTOL. 

1  have  the  honor  to  inclose  a  report  on  Hereford  cattle  in  answer  to 
Department  circular  of  the  18th  of  July,  1883. 

This  consulate  has  in  its  immediate  vicinity  three  breeds  of  cattle, 
viz,  Devons,  a  fine  tribe  of  Short-horns,  and  Herefords. 

I  have  selected  the  latter  breed  as  the  subject  of  my  report,  to  the 
exclusion  of  the  other  two,  for  the  following  reasons :  (I)  On  account  of 
the  wide  celebrity  already  enjoyed  by  these  two  breeds,  making  a  report 
unnecessary ;  and  (2)  on  account  of  the  fact  that  the  Hereford  seems  to 
be,  of  all  breeds  in  the  United  Kingdom,  the  one  most  suited  to  the  needs 
of  the  stock  of  the  United  States. 

While  much  of  what  I  have  written  is  undoubtedly  familiar  to  our 
breeders,  yet  I  trust  that  this  report  may  contribute  somewhat  towards 
diffusing  widely  a  knowledge  of  the  great  merits  of  this  sterling  breed. 

Hereford  cattle  in  the  herd  are  a  peculiarly  impressive  sight.  Their 
grand  development,  their  firm  agility  and  light  activity,  their  intelli- 
gent faces  and  placid  expression,  and  possibly  more  than  anything  else 
their  wonderful  similarity  to  each  other,  all  combine  to  make  a  spectacle 
pleasing  to  even  the  most  indifferent  observer.  He  cannot  fail  to  note 
how  closely  they  conform  to  a  common  type,  and  that  type  a  striking 
one.  Its  main  feature  is  suggested  when  I  say  that  they  are  oftener 
spoken  of  as  "  white  faces,"  or  "  red-with-white  faces  "  than  as  Here- 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  173 

fords.  But  Hereford  cattle  have  not  always  thus  assimilated  so  closely 
to  a  common  type.  Up  to  well  within  the  present  century  there  were 
four  distinct  varieties  of  the  breed  differing  widely  from  one  another  in 
appearance,  but  three  have  succumbed  so  completely  to  the  u  red-with- 
white"  face  that  a  Hereford  not  thus  marked  is  as  rare  as  a  white  crow. 

The  origin  of  the  breed  is  doubtful.  The  best  authorities  consider  it 
aboriginal ;  others  claim  its  importation  from  Normandy  or  Flanders ; 
others,  again,  think  the  climate  and  conditions  of  Hereford  County 
have  made  what  they  have  out  of  an  animal  that  originally  inhab- 
ited the  shire  of  Devon.  Be  its  origin  what  it  may,  its  environment 
in  Hereford  County  and  surrounding  counties  has  resulted  in  one  of  the 
finest  beef-producing  breeds  of  cattle  in  the  world,  nor  is  the  breed  to 
be  despised  for  the  dairy  under  conditions  more  favorable  than  are  to 
be  obtained  in  its  home  county. 

The  authentic  history  of  the  breed  begins  about  the  year  1800.  In 
the  year  before  this  occurred  the  first  cattle  show  of  the  celebrated 
Srnithfield  Club,  and  a  Hereford  ox  was  the  winner  of  the  first  prize ; 
a.  more  general  acknowledgment  of  merit  then  than  now,  because  at 
that  time,  and  indeed  up  to  the  year  1851,  all  breeds  were  shown  in 
competition  with  each  other.  This  ox  was  6  feet  7  inches  high,  10  feet 
4  inches  girth,  and  weighed  1,976  pounds  (live  weight).  His  success 
was  maintained  by  the  breed  so  well  that  up  to  185l"the  Herefords  are 
credited  in  Smithfield  Club  records  with  one  hundred  and  eighty-five 
prizes  for  their  oxen  and  steers  against  one  hundred  and  ninety  for  all 
other  breeds  together,  including  Shorthorns,  Devons,  and  Scotch.  The 
record  of  prizes  won  by  Hereford  cows  and  heifers  is,  however,  by  no 
means  so  good,  being  twenty-two  for  them  against  one  hundred  and 
eleven  for  all  other  breeds.  Mr.  Duckham,  in  his  interesting  and  val- 
uable little  work  on  the  breed,  comments  thus  on  this  disparity  between 
the  success  of  the  males  and  females.  He  says : 

This  is  certainly  a  great  falling  off  compared  with  the  oxen  and  steers,  and  goes  far 
to  prove  the  correctness  of  my  remark  respecting  the  study  of  nature's  laws  in  the  cul- 
tivation of  tho  soil  and  of  the  adaptation  of  stock  to  it.  The  soil  of  the  county  of 
Hereford  being  neither  applicable  for  dairy  or  feeding  purposes,  those  who  have  cul- 
tivated it  for  ages  made  it  their  study  to  breed  steers  and  oxen  which  should,  by  1  heir 
superior  quality  and  aptitude  to  fatten,  command  the  attention  of  tho  distant  grazier. 

Herefordshire  has  550,000  acres.  About  100,000  acres  are  utilized  nei- 
ther for  pasture  nor  agriculture ;  the  balance  is  divided  equally,  almost, 
between  these  two  pursuits.  The  substratum  is  a  light-red  sandstone, 
and  the  soil  generally  is  a  deep-red  heavy  loam,  sometimes  with  some 
clay  in  it.  The  surface  of  the  county  is  hilly,  and  averages  about  250 
feet  above  sea-level.  There  are  some  small  but  beautiful  and  fertile 
valleys.  The  culture  of  tree-fruits,  notably  apples,  and  of  hops  is 
largely  pursued.  Damp  fogs  prevail  at  some  seasons  and  help  to  keep 
the  grass  beautifully  green  all  the  year  round. 

Mr.  Southall  has  kindly  furnished  me  with  the  following  particulars 
of  temperature,  rainfall,  &c.,  the  results  of  his  own  observations  at  his 
house  in  Koss,  the  sourthern  part  of  the  county: 


Temperature. 

1882. 

1883. 

Absolute  maximum  .  .  ..      ...        ...             ...      ..    ....  .  ..     ................ 

o    / 

84  1 

o    / 

*77  0 

19.6 

t!8.  8 

Average  maximum                               ..                                            .....           ..... 

57.1 

56  9 

42.3 

41.6 

Mean  .,        .                                                            

49.7 

49.25 

*  The  temperature  reached  this  extremely  moderate  height  only  on  throe  or  four  days  In  the  year, 
t  On  one  day  only. 


174  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

The  rainfall  amounted  in  1883  to  31.52  inches,  being  1.34  inches  more 
than  the  average.     There  were  in  this  year  197  days  on  which  rain  fell. 
The  ideal  Hereford  is  thus  described  by  Mr.  Duckhain  : 

The  face,  throat,  chest,  lower  part  of  the  body  and  legs,  together  with  the  crest  or 
mane,  and  the  tip  of  the  tail,  a  beautifully  clear  white;  a  small  red  spot  on  the  eye, 
and  a  round  red  spot  on  the  throat,  in  the  middle  of  the  white,  are  distinctive  marks 
which  have  many  admirers.  The  horns  are  of  a  yellow  or  white  waxy  appearance, 
frequently  darker  at  the  ends ;  those  of  the  bull  should  spring  out  straightly  from, 
a  broad  flat  forehead,  whilst  those  of  the  cows  have  a  wave  and  a  slight  upward  tend- 
(Mx-y.  The  countenance  is  at  once  pleasant,  cheerful,  and  open,  presenting  a  placid 
appearance,  denoting  a  good  temper  and  that  quietude  of  disposition  which  is  so  es- 
sential to  the  successful  grazing  of  all  ruminating  animals;  yet  the  eye  is  full  and 
lively,  the  head  small  in  comparison  to  the  substance  of  the  body.  The  muzzle  white, 
and  moderately  fine  thin  cheek.  The  chest  deep  and  full,  well  covered  on  the  outside 
\vith  mellow  flesh ;  kernel  full  up  from  shoulder-point  to  throat ;  and  so  beautifully 
do  the  shoulder-blades  blend  into  the  body  that  it  is  difficult  to  tell  in  a  well-fed  ani- 
mal where  they  are  set  on.  The  chine  and  loin  broad ;.  hips  long  and  moderately 
broad  ;  legs  straight  and  small.  The  rump  forming  a  straight  line  with  the  back,  and 
at  a  right  angle  with  the  thigh,  which  should  be  full  of  flesh  down  to  the  hocks, 
without  exuberance ;  twist  good,  well  filled  up  with  flesh  even  with  the  thigh.  The 
ribs  should  spring  well  and  deep,  level  with  shoulder-point ;  the  flank  full,  and  the 
whole  carcass  welland  evenly  covered  with,  a  rich  mellow  flesh,  distinguishable  by 
yielding  with  a  its  pleasing  elasticity  to  the  touch.  The  hide  thick,  yet  mellow,  and 
well  covered  with  soft,  glossy  hair  having  a  tendency  to  curl. 

A  glance  at  the  cuts  presented  here  will  show  us  immediately  how 
closely  the  animals  whose  portraits  have  been  selected  to  accompany 
this  article  answer  to  this  description.  The  bull,  Itoineo,  is  perfect. 
He  was  bred  by  Mr.  Carwardine,  of  Leoiniiister,  in  Herefordshire,  and 
was  sold  in  1882  to  Messrs.  Earl  &  Stuart,  of  Lafayette,  Ind.,  where  he 
now  is. 

The  ox  pictured  here  was  bred  by  Mr.  J.  Price,  of  Pembridge  in 
Herefordshire.  He  won  the  Elkiugton  Challenge  Cup  at  Birmingham 
in  1881,  and  again  in  1882.  This  prize  has  never  before  been  won  twice 
by  the  same  animal,  and,  in  recognition  of  his  great  feat,  the  portrait  of 
this  ox  is  to  have  the  place  of  honor,  the  title-page,  of  volume  14  of 
the  Hereford  Herd-Book,  just  about  to  be  issued.  The  general  rule 
is  to  admit  to  the  herd-book  only  cuts  of  such  animals  as  take  first  prize 
at  a  royal  agricultural  show.  The  thirteenth  volume,  I  may  mention 
here,  contains  the  names  of  199  breeders,  of  whom  11  are  either  in  the 
United  States  or  Canada.  The  fourteenth  volume,  which  is  to  be  issued 
in  February  next,  contains,  I  am  informed,  a  much  larger  number  of 
breeders'  names.  I  hardly  think  it  necessary,  but  still  I  venture  to 
suggest  that  no  American  owner  or  breeder  of  Herefords  eligible  for 
entry  should  omit  to  register  them.  The  herd-book  is  under  the  con- 
trol of  S.  W.  Urwick,  esq.,  of  Leominster,  and  all  breeders  of  these  cat- 
tle are  under  obligation  to  him  for  the  accuracy  and  completeness  of 
the  work.  I  take  pleasure  in  acknowledging  here  the  obligation  I  also 
am  under  to  Mr.  TJrwick  for  assistance  rendered  and  information  ex- 
tended in  connection  with  this  report. 

The  two  cows  portrayed  here  are  both  royal  prize  winners  at  late 
shows.  Golden  Treasure  has  a  little  too  much  white  for  a  perfect 
Hereford,  but  in  other  respects  she  is  all  that  a  pure-bred  Hereford 
should  be. 

Herefords  were  formerly  used  considerably  in  the  yoke,  where  "they 
combined  the  activity  of  the  Devon  with  the  strength  of  the  Short- 
horn." There,  as  well  as  in  grazing,  their  placed,  quiet  temper  rendered 
them  doubly  valuable.  In  these  old  days  when  they  were  put  to  the 
yoke,  when  the  demand  for  meat  was  not  so  pressing  as  now,  nor  monev 
requiring  so  rapid  a  turn-over,  they  were  often  kept  until  six  or  seven 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  175 

years  old;  and  their  flesh  developed  "that  beautiful  marbled  appear- 
ance caused  by  the  admixture  of  fat  and  lean  which  is  so  much  prized 
by  epicures."  Such  finely  ripened  beef  is  no  longer  procurable,  as  the 
Hereford  is  now  considered  ready  for  the  market  at  from  20  to  30  months 
old.  Grass  with  a  little  oil-cake  is  all  they  need,  and  their  agility  in 
grazing  and  facility  for  fattening  makes  the  steers  much  sought  after 
to  graze  in  the  midland  counties  for  the  London  market.  They  are  in 
their  prime  at  three,  but  will  grow  up  to  four,  and  their  live  weight  at 
maturity  is  from  1,800  to  2,500  pounds.  The  calves  are  dropped  gener- 
ally from  April  to  July.  Yearling  heifers  are  seldom  put  to  the  bull. 
The  calves  run  on  their  dams  for  6  or  7  months,  and  are  rarely  weaned 
on  oil-cake.  The  young  steers  are  fed  upon  grass,  and  get  turnips  and 
cut  straw  and  sometimes  a  little  oil-cake  in  winter. 

I  subjoin  to  this  report  a  table  showing  the  live  weights  of  all  the 
cattle  of  all  breeds  exhibited  at  the  eighty-six>th  annual  show  of  the 
Smithfield  Club  in  December,  1883,  prepared  by  me  from  the  official 
catalogue.  It  is  presented  more  as  a  matter  of  interest  than  for  any 
deductions  that  might  be  drawn  from  it.  "  The  youngest  and  oldest 
Hereford  classes  as  a  general  thing  at  these  shows,"  Mr.  Duckham  writes 
me,  "are  the  heaviest  of  any  exhibited."  The  superiority  in  weight  of 
the  younger  classes  proves,  of  course,  their  earlier  development ;  the 
superiority  of  the  oldest,  indicates  that  eventually  they  attain  a  greater 
size  than  other  breeds.  But  I  have  already  said  that  Herefords  are  not 
commonly  allowed,  for  various  reasons,  to  obtain  the  age  which  in  the 
past  made  them  so  remarkable  for  their  size  and  weight. 

Another  reason  for  the  lack  of  "tall  figures"  in  these  days  for  cattle 
weights  is  the  partial  abandonment  of  the  time-honored  practice  of  feed- 
ing up  stock  until  it  becomes  so  fat  as  to  be  literally  useless  for  any 
other  purpose  than  to  take  a  prize. 

Mr.  McDonald,  in  his  report  to  the  Koyal  Agricultural  Society  upon 
the  stock  exhibited  at  the  society's  meeting  at  York  in  July,  1883,  says 
on  this  point: 

Overfeeding  has  been  disappearing  somewhat  in  recent  years.  There  is  still  too 
much  of  it,  however. 

He  says  elsewhere : 

Preparation  for  modern  show  yards  is  a  severe  ordeal  and  only  good  constituted 
animals  can  endure  it.  It  leads  to  many  breeding  mishaps  and  failures;  but  when  one 
finds  the  sires  and  dams  of  so  many  of  the  prize-winners  themselves  in  prize-lists,  as  was 
the  case  at  York,  one  is  forced  to  the"  conclusion  that  successful  showing  and  breeding 
go  hand  in  hand  to  a  considerable  extent  and  to  a  larger  degree  than  is  commonly 
imagined;  and  one  is  led  to  believe  that  high  feeding  is  not  so  detrimental  in  skillful 
hands  to  successful  breeding  as  is  generally  imagined. 

Herefords,  and  only  Herefords,  are  found  in  Herefordshire,  Shrop- 
shire-, Monmouthshire,  Eadnorshire,  Breconshire,  and  also  in  Worces- 
tershire and  Montgomeryshire.  Large  numbers  are  also  found  in  Corn- 
wall and  Ireland,  and  there  are  herds  of  them  in  many  other  counties. 
They  are  seldom  crossed  with  the  Short-horn,  though  they  are  said  to 
blend  well  when  it  is  done ;  the  same  statement  holds  good  with  the 
Ayrshires.  Hereford  on  Devon  has  been  tried,  resulting  in  a  progeny 
inferior  in  some  respects.  Hereford  on  Alderney  is  said  to  produce 
satisfactory  results,  improving  the  cow  of  the  first  cross  as  a  feeder  and 
not  injuring  her  milk  in  quantity  or  quality.  A  cross  with  the  West 
Highland  Kyloe  was  a  failure,  but  with  Galloway  Polls  was  a  great  suc- 
cess. These  statements  of  the  results  of  Hereford  crosses  are  taken 
from  a  prize  essay  for  the  Boyal  Agricultural  Society  made  by  the  late 
H.  H.  Dixon,  a  notable  authority  on  such  matters  when  alive. 


176  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Evidence  establishes  beyond  question  that  the  Hereford  when  re- 
moved to  almost  any  climate  does  not  degenerate  as  a  beef  producer. 
The  females,  too,  of  the  breed  are  found  most  satisfactory  for  the  dairy, 
under  different  conditions  than  can  be  found  in  their  home  countries. 
Both  of  these  conclusions  are  contrary  to  an  opinion  I  have  heard  many 
express  to  the  effect  that  Herefords  deteriorate  away  from  home.  But 
I  have  observed  that  while  such  an  opinion  seems  very  general,  it  is 
maintained  by  those  without  special  knowledge  of  the  breed,  and  I 
think  it  an  inherited  prejudice  which  a  little  investigation  would  dis- 
prove to  the  satisfaction  of  the  holder.  "  Old  prejudices  die  hard"  is 
true  and  trite.  In  Bedfordshire  and  Dorset  herds  have  been  main- 
tained for  many  years,  fifty  in  some  cases,  and  these  herds  are  fully  up 
to  the  standard  of  the  homebred  ones ;  in  every  case,  that  is,  in  which 
duo  care  has  been  taken  to  get  an  occasional  infusion  of  fresh  blood. 
In  the  wet  and  changeable  climate  of  Cornwall  the  breed  is  established 
largely  and  maintains  its  reputation,  though  Devons  and  Short-horns 
are  said  to  deteriorate  there.  In  the  counties  near  London,  Surrey, 
Cambridge,  and  Kent,  Herefords  have  done  well;  also  in  Wales  and 
Scotland.  They  withstand  the  severe  climate  of  the  latter  country 
without  seeming  difficulty,  and  will  live  where  many  Short-horns  cannot. 
In  Ireland  they  are  much  esteemed  and  their  number  is  constantly  in 
creasing.  They  maintain  in  all  these  places  their  characteristics  of 
early  development  and  rapid  and  even  fattening. 

The  breed  seems  to  stand  the  heat  with  the  same  indiiierence  it  does 
the  cold.  In  Jamaica  the  progeny  of  some  imported  Hereford  bulls 
have  proved  the  most  valuable  and  useful  stock  in  the  island ;  and  the 
heat  of  Australia  has  not  affected  in  the  slightest  degree  the  character- 
istics of  the  large  number  of  Herefords  there.  Of  their  success  in  the 
United  States  I  shall  speak  farther  on. 

I  have  thus  far  considered  the  Herefords  mainly  as  a  butcher's  breed. 
I  will  now  speak  of  their  qualifications  for  the  dairy.  In  the  shire  of 
Dorset,  one  of  the  crack  dairy  districts  of  England,  producing  a  butter 
much  sought  after,*  there  are  many  Hereford  dairy  herds.  The  owner 
of  the  largest  of  these  herds  wrote  twenty  years  since  as  follows: 

Ourherdof  Herefords  have  been  establ  islied  nearly  thirty  years,  and  so  far  from  their 
being  degenerated  with  us  they  are  much  improved,  and  Hereford  dairies  are  becom- 
ing very  common  in  this  county.  In  proof  that  they  are  good  for  rnilk  with  us,  wo 
let  nearly  100  cows  to  dairy  people,  and  if  I  buy  one  of  any  other  breed  to  fill  up  the 
dairy,  they  always  grumble,  and  would  rather  have  ono  of  our  own  bred  heifers. 
Our  system  is,  wo  lot  our  cows  at  so  much  per  year,  finding  them  in  land  and  mak- 
ing the  hay;  the  calves  being  reared  by  hand  with  skini  milk  and  linseed  until  threo 
months  old,  when  we  take  them,  and  allow  a  quarter's  rent  of  the  cow  for  the  calf  at 
that  age;  they  are  then  turned  into  the  pasture. 

The  proprietor  of  this  herd  and  writer  of  this  letter  was  Mr.  James, 
of  Blandford,  Dorset.  His  son  writes  mo  under  date  January  19, 1884, 
that  the  same  system  is  still  pursued  and  that  the  Herefords  are  as 
great  a  success  as  ever.  He  says : 

My  late  father  and  myself  have  kept  and  bred  Herefords  for  dairy  cows  for  forty- 
eight  years  and  have  always  used  the  best  blood  we  could  get.  I  have  won  a  num- 
ber of  prizes  for t( dairy  cows"  and  " dairy  cows  and  offspring"  agaiusb  Devous  and 
Short-horns. 

Mr.  James  further  says : 

In  a  cold,  wet,  sour  place  there  is  nothing  like  the  Herefords  ;  their  good  coats  are 
a  protection  in  the  winter.  The  butter  that  is  made  is  a  splendid  color  and  taste. 

*  So  much  appreciated  is  this  Dorset  butter,  that  to  my  personal  knowledge  it  is  a 
common  practice  for  retailers  in  Bristol  to  call  certain  tine  grades  of  Normandy  but- 
ter Dorset  butter.  They  say  it  is  about  the  same  and  helps  the  sale. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  177 

There  are  lots  of  Hereford  dairies  in  this  county.  In  tfio  year  1831  I  sold  t\ro  balls 
to  cross  Short-horns,  and  I  know  parties  -vvho  have  crossed  Hereford^  with  Short-horns 
and  have  coiue  back  again  to  tho  Hereibrds. 

Mr.  White  writes  me  from  Wiltshire  as  follows: 

I  keep  a  dairy  of  ninety  pure  bred  Hereford  cows,  which  breed  has  been  kept  on  this 
farm  for  the  last  sixty  years,  and  I  have  at  all  times  endeavored  to  obtain  the  milkiest 
strain  I  could,  and  I  think  I  have  now  a  herd  of  cows  more  adapted  to  dairy  purposes 
than  any  other  Hereford  herd  in  this  country,  I  have  made  fair  trials  between  the 
Hereford  and  Short-horn  as  to  profit,  and  I  give  my  decided  preference  to  the  former. 

The  testimony  from  these  two  herds  is  the  most  valuable  that  could 
possibly  be  obtained  as  to  the  dairy  capabilities  of  the  breed,  as  they 
are  the  largest,  and  have  been  longest  established  of  any  in  existence. 
I  have  received  letters  similar  in  tenor  to  the  above  from  various 
smaller  breeders  in  different  counties,  and  I  have  not  been  able  to  dis- 
cover an  instance  where  breeders  or  dairymen  have  changed  back  to 
other  breeds  after  starting  in  with  Herefords.  I  had  hoped  to  send 
with  this  report  some  figures  giving  actual  inilk  and  butter  products, 
&c.,  but  I  must  leave  them  for  a  supplementary  report,  as  I  have  al- 
ready detained  this  one  over  a  month,  waiting  for  the  promised  sta- 
tistics. But  it  is  not  so  much  as  milkers  that  the  United  States  are 
interested  in  the  breed,  but  as  beef  producers ;  and  that  in  this  capac- 
ity they  are  indeed  largely  interested  will  be  proved  when  I  say  that 
the  extraordinary  demand  for  pedigree  Herefords  from  the  United 
States  in  the  last  few  years  has  so  increased  the  price  of  these  cattle 
that  the  Hereford  breeders  are  looked  upon  with  envy  by  other  breed- 
ers throughout  the  kingdom  as  having  u  struck  a  bonanza."  That 
Herefords  will  repay  a  large  expenditure  is  undeniable.  Their  tremen- 
dous development  of  flesh,  their  activity  as  feeders,  their  insensibility 
to  changes  of  climate,  their  hardiness,  their  quiet  and  placid  tempers, 
are  just  precisely  the  qualities  needed  for  the  improvement  of  our  West- 
ern, Texas,  and  "  Spanish  "  cattle.  Their  bulls,  too,  have  a  marvelous 
faculty  of  impressing  their  qualities  on  their  get,  and  there  is  many  a 
half-breed  Hereford  which  is  absolutely  indistinguishable  in  appearance 
and  quality  from  a  pure  bred  one,  so  completely  is  the  influence  of  the 
darn  eliminated.  Another  point.  The  Hereford  is  specially  strong 
just  where  our  Western  cattle  are  weak,  viz,  in  the  development  of  the 
flesh  on  the  back.  The  back  of  a  well  ripened  Hereford  steer  has  been 
compared  to  a  table,  and  the  back  of  a  Texas  steer  to  a  wedge.  Volumes 
could  not  say  more. 

There  were  two  remarkable  sales  of  Herefords  during  the  past  year ; 
one,  the  dispersal  of  Mr.  Pitt's  herd  at  Ohadnor  Court,  aud  the  other 
the  dispersal  of  Mr.  Turner's  herd  at  Leen.  Mr.  Pitt  established  his 
hard  in  1842  from  four  celebrated  cows  of  the  day.  I  present  a  little 
statement  of  the  amounts  received  by  Mr.  Pitt  at  this  sale. 


Number  of  animals. 

Value. 

Average. 

$13,450  00 

$i°0  00 

4,  961  63 

J98  47 

7,818  05 

651  50 

1,  113  67 

371  22 

3,  995  87 

333  00 

7bulla  

2,  800  00 

400  00 

K"inety -one  animals  averaged  about  $375  each. 

The  average  of  $651.50  for  twelve  two-year-old  heifers  has  never  be- 
fore been  equalled  in  England  in  any  breed. 
H.  Ex.  51 12 


178  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

Mr.  Turner's  herd  has  been  established  for  about  eighty  years,  his 
grandfather  being  the  founder.  Since  1854  Mr.  Turner  has  won  with 
individuals  of  his  herd  111  first  prizes,  60  second  prizes,  11  third,  besides 
52  special  prizes.  He  received  an  average  of  $360  apiece  for  his  animals, 
his  cows  and  calves  averaging  a  little  higher. 

These  two  herds  were  exceptionally  fine  and  had  a  wide  celebrity. 
Many  of  the  animals  went  to  the  United  States,  making,  with  all  others 
forwarded,  a  total  of  1,800  pedigree  Herefords  sent  to- the  United  States 
from  February  1,  1883,  to  February  1, 1884.  This  includes  one  lot  of 
300  sent  to  Baltimore  in  January  of  this  present  year. 

The  question  naturally  comes  up  now,  whether  this  demand  for  the 
Herefords  is  a  fancy  or  a  fashion,  likely  to  die  out  and  let  down  prices. 
It  is  worth  considering.  I  have  said  that  the  principal  demand  for  the 
Herefords  in  the  United  States  was  as  beef  makers,  but  I  did  not  intend 
at  all  to  intimate  that  their  merits  as  milkers  were  overlooked.  On  the 
contrary  many  breeders  in  the  United  States  are  enthusiastic  over 
them  as  a  dairy  breed  and  quite  a  number  of  wealthy  men  are  forming 
herds.  Some  go  so  far  as  to  claim  that  the  Hereford  is  the  coming 
breed,  which  is  going  to  carry  all  before  it,  and  that  the  Short-horn  will 
eventually  fall  before  the  Middle-horn,  just  as  the  Long-horn  went  down 
in  the  past.  The  high  esteem  in  which  the  breed  is  held  in  the  United 
States  and  the  growing  appreciation  of  its  merits  which  exists  in 
England  preclude,  it  seems  to  me,  the  possibility  of  a  fall  in  prices  in 
the  near  future  or  in  fact  for  many  years.  It  is  even  possible  that  for 
a  time  prices  may  go  higher  than  now.  A  gentleman  writes  me  from 
Hereford  County  thus : 

I  am  now  looking  out  for  a  lot  (of  pedigree  Hereford  cattle  for  America) ;  they  are 
more  difficult  to  get,  as  the  demand  has  been  great  and  prices  are  much  higher. 

HOW  TO  EXPORT  HEREFORDS. 

By  far  the  larger  proportion  of  theHerefords  sent  to  the  United  States 
go  via  Liverpool,  though  several  large  herds  have  been  sent  by  way  of 
Bristol.  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  in  many  cases  better  facilities  could 
be  obtained  via  Bristol  than  are  obtained  via  Liverpool.  One  reason  I 
have  for  this  opinion  is  the  fact  that  several  of  the  steamers  plying  in 
the  lines  from  Bristol  to  New  York  are  unusually  high  between  decks, 
and  extremely  well  lighted  and  ventilated — an  important  matter. 
Another  advantage  is  that  cattle  can  be  brought  from  Hereford  in  the 
cars  directly  alongside  of  the  ship's  deck. 

The  Great  Western  Railway  Company  quote  the  following  to  me  as 
about  their  average  rates  for  transporting  cattle  from  the  town  of  Here- 
ford to  Bristol  or  to  Avonmouth  docks  (a  port  of  Bristol) : 

Half  wagon-load  consisting  of  4  cattle ., „  $5  46 

Small  wagon-load  consisting  of  7  fat  cattle 8  20 

Medium  vragon-load  consisting  of  8  fat  cattle 9  23 

Large  wagon-load,  unlimited  (holding  about  10) 11  00 

The  Great  Western  Steamship  Company,  plying  between  Bristol  and 
New  York,  inform  me  that  their  rates  average  from  $25  to  $30  per  full- 
grown  animal.  The  ship  provides  water  and  stalls,  and  their  bills  of 
lading  contain  this  clause :  "  Ship  not  accountable  for  mortality  or  acci- 
dent from  any  cause  whatever."  A  herd  of  one  hundred  and  nine  Here- 
ford cattle  was  carried  on  this  line  some  time  ago  at  the  following  rates : 
Cows  and  heifers,  $24.33  each:  calves,  $12.16  each:  sucking  calves, 
$4,86  each. 

A  herd  of  fine  Jersey  cattle  carried  on  this  line  subsequently,  when 
freights  were  higher,  paid  an  average  of  $30.50  each  for  full-grown 
animals. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  179 

•  • 

In  order  to  take  proper  care  of  valuable  cattle  in  ocean  transit,  there- 
should  be  one  man  for  each  twelve  cattle.  Competent  men  for  this  pur- 
pose can  be  hired  in  England  for  about  $1.25  per  day  and  all  expenses 
paid,  including  a  pass  back  to  the  port  of  departure.  When  a  steamer 
gives  a  rate  for  carrying  cattle,  the  pass  over  and  back  for  a  certain 
number  of  cattle-tenders  is  included.  The  foreman  in  charge  of  the 
tenders  would  of  course  get  more  than  $1.25  per  day,  but  in  most  cases 
he  is  the  American  agent  or  buyer,  or  is  connected  in  some  permanent 
capacity  with  the  farm  or  the  business  of  the  purchaser.  Such  cattle  of 
course  are  insured  to  their  full  value  almost  invariably,  and  are  admitted, 
being  breeding  animals,  into  the  United  States  free  of  duty.  Certificates 
from  a  veterinary  surgeon  and  from  the  consul  at  the  point  of  depart- 
ure invariably  accompany  such  consignment. 

HEREFORDS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Any  account  of  Herefords  in  the  United  States  would  be  incomplete 
without  mention  in  connection  therewith  of  the  name  of  Mr.  T.  L.  Miller, 
of  Beecher,  111.  He  was  the  first,  or  one  of  the  first,  to  perceive  what  a 
boon  to  the  stock  of  the  United  States  the  almost  unknown  Hereford 
would  be,  and  for  years  he  has  persistently  and  enthusiastically  ad- 
vocated him  in  his  Live-Stock  Journal.  In  1873  he  imported  from  Here- 
ford a  two-year-old  heifer,  Dolly  Varden,  with  a  calf  at  foot.  She  has 
brought  alive  calf  every  year  since,  one  of  the  first  being  the  bull  Suc- 
cess, u  hitherto  acknowledged  as  the  best-Hereford  bull  in  the  United 
States,  and  still  alive  and  active.  Dolly  Varden  and  Success  have  been 
repeatedly  exhibited  and  never  beaten,  whilst  the  get  of  Success  has  in 
several  instances  brought  $1,000  per  head." 

The  Hereford  Times,  of  October  18,  1883,  says : 

To  this  purchase  of  Dolly  Vardeu  and  her  calf,  combined  with  the  indomitable 
energy  and  perseverance  of  Mr.  Miller,  the  brisk  demand,  present  high  favor  and  re- 
pute in  which  Hereford  cattle  are  held  is  attributable.. 

Mr.  Miller's  neighbors  in  Illinois  are  following  his  example  in  import- 
ing Herefords.  Messrs.  G.  Leigh  £  Co.,  of  Beecher,  111.,  have  bought 
eight  animals  within  the  past  few  weeks  from  the  herd  at  Felhampton 
Court;  Mr.  Culbertsou,  of  Chicago,  two;  and  Mr.  J.  V.  Farwell,  also 
of  Chicago,  sixteen,  all  from  the  same  herd. 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 

• 

In  conclusion,  I  wish  to  acknowledge  the  extreme  courtesy  with  which 
my  requests  for  information  have  been  responded  to  by  the  breeders  of 
Herefords.  It  is  not  always  easy  for  a  consul  to  obtain  information. 
His  requests  sometimes  are  met  with  discourtesy,  sometimes  with  in- 
difference ;  but  in  this  case  only  five  letters  out  of  about  a  hundred  and 
thirty-five  dispatched  by  me  remained  unanswered.  In  every  case  in 
which  I  had  a  personal  interview  with  Hereford  men,  except  one,  every 
facility  was  placed  at  my  disposal  for  a  thorough  investigation.  [  have 
to  acknowledge,  especially,  the  kindness,  in  connection  with  this  report, 
of  Thomas  Duckham,  esq.,  M.  P.;  of  S.  W.  Urwick,  esq.,  secretary  of 
the  Hereford  herd-book;  of  J.  Bowen  Jones,  esq.,  of  Shropshire ;  of  Lord 
Moreton,  M.  P. ;  of  E.  G.  Clarke,  esq.,  of  Bristol;  and  of  N.  J.  Hme,  esq., 
assistant  secretary  of  the  ^^f/^^^  LATHEOp> 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Bristol j  January j  31, 1884. 


180  CATTLE  AND  DAIBY  FARMING. 

,4  table  prepared  bi/  Consul  LatJirop,  of  Bristol,  shoiving  tJte  respective  weights  of  the  cattle 
exhibited  at  tlie  eighty-sixth  annual  show  of  the  Smithfield  Club,  December,  1883, 

STEEES  NOT  EXCEEDING  TWO  YEAES  OLD. 


Herefords. 

Short- 
horns. 

Derons. 

Sussex. 

Eed-PoUed 
breed. 

Scotch  . 
Highland 
breed. 

Scotch 
Polled 
breed. 

Cross-bred 
cattle. 

Cwt.  qr.  Tbs. 

Ciot.  qr.  Ibs. 

Ciot.  qr.  Ibs. 
10    '2    10 

Cwt.  qr.  Ibs. 
12    2    24 

dot  qr.  Ibs. 

Owt.  qr.  Ibs. 

Cwt.  qr.  Ibs. 

Cwt.  qr.  Ibs. 
13    2    24 

10    -i     14 

13    2    25 

11    2    14 

•1004. 

9    0     10 

11    1      8 

11    3    22 

82      0 

]•>    0      2 

13    0      0 

9    3    23 

12    1      8 

12    3    27 

11    1    10 

10    0    20 

12    2    25 

12    0    21 

12    0    ^5 

8    3    20 

13    3      0 

12    1    20 

120      0 

STEEES  ABOVE  TWO  AND  NOT  EXCEEDING  THEEE  YEAES  OLD. 


•IE  1   4 

16  0  16 

14  1   4 

13  3  20 

12  2   0 

16  2  °6 

16  3   5 

•jo  O    r, 

J9  1  O9 

15  0   4 

12  1  94 

16  3   8 

17  0  21 

16  3  10 

12  2   2 

19  o   5 

14  0  18 

16  2  20 

17  1   4 

•IK    9   01 

14  1  21 

13  3   6 

18  3  24 

13  2  20 

17  1   4 

ni   o 

*  14  '  3  10 

14  0  2!) 

16  0   8 

18  0  22 

1  -  q  •!<> 

17  2  26 

351   9 

18  0   0 

15  0  15 

17  2   6 

17  3   8 

12  '}   0 

16  0   2 

16  1   4 

15  3  °6 

14  1  22 

17  1   4 

14  3  12 

14  2  10 

16  0  24 

18  0  10 

18  1  10 

17  0  16 

19  0  20 

17  0  16 

18  2   4 

18  3   8 

19  0  27 

STEEES  ABOVE  THEEE  AND  NOT  EXCEEDING  FOTJE  YEAES  OLD. 


17  3  14 
18  2  16 

19  3   0 
19  1  20 
18  2  10 

17  2   6 
17  2   G 
15  3  20 

20  1   0 
18  3   2 

15  1  20 
17  3   6 

15  3  20 
15  3  14 

18  2  10 
17  0  0 
21  0  23 

19  1  24 
19  3   3 

20  2  20 

14  2   7 

19  0  22 

14  0  18 

17  1  0 

17  1  22 

13  2   2 

HEIFEES  NOT  EXCEEDING  FOUE  YEAES  OLD. 


*  17  0  18 

18  1   5 

14  0   1 

16  3  14 

12  1  94 

14  1  10 

11  1   6 

17  0  26 

16  3  12 

13  3  12 

14  0   8 

13  3  22 

17  2  22 

13  1   5 

18  3  27 

16  3  20 

12  1  20 

14  0  18 

9  2  18 

13  3  16 

16  1  10 

12  0   0 

17  3  19 

14  0  18 

15  3  18 

13  e  2 

13  3   2 

17  3  20 

15  3  20 

14  3  20 

13  3  10 

16  0  14 

COWS  ABOVE  FOUE  YEAES  OLD. 


20  3   2 

21  0   0 

13  3   6 

16  0  16 

17  2  24 

14  0   5 

19  3   0 

19  2  12 

12  1  13 

16  2   6 

14  3   4 

13  2  10 

17  2  20 

18  1   8 

17  I   4 

15  3  10 

13  0  14 

1  1  3  12 

14  2  24 

19  1  18 

13  1  10 

14  0  21 

11  1   0 

17  3  15 

17  0   8 

13  3  15 

20  0   5 

16  3  14 

THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  181 


HEREFORDSHIRE  AND  HEREFORD  CATTLE. 

REPORT  PREPARED  FOR   CONSVL  DOCKERY,  OF  LEEDS,  J?F  MR.  JOHN  KERSLEY 
FOWLER,*  PREEENDAL  FARM,  ATLESBURY. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  HEREFORDSHIRE. 

In  writing  an  account  of  this  very  valuable  and  beautiful  tribe  of 
cattle,  it  is  necessary  to  give  a  description  of  the  county  which  gives 
its  name  to  the  breed,  and  also  of  the  soil  and  climate,  as  well  as  the 
general  characteristics  of  the  district,  as  this  particular  breed  of  cattle 
is  specially  adapted  to  certain  localities  in  England,  and,  although  I 
will  not  venture  to  affirm  that  they  will  not  thrive  under  other  climatic 
and  geological  circumstances  than  their  own  county,  from  my  own  per- 
sonal experience  I  find  that  they  are  more  adapted  for  those  districts 
which  partake  more  or  less  of  the  character  of  Herefordshire. 

This  county  is  situated  in  the  west  midland  district  of  England,'  ad- 
joining the  Welsh  counties,  and  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Shropshire, 
on  the  east  by  Worcestershire  and  Gloucestershire,  on  the  south  by 
Monmouthshire,  and  on  the  west  by  Eadnorshire  and  Breconshire.  It 
will,  therefore,  be  seen  that  it  has  no  sea  coast,  but  the  river  Wye  run- 
ning through  the  county  gives  it  communication  with  the  sea,  through 
the  Bristol  Channel.  It  is  well  supplied  with  railway  communication, 
the  Midland  giving  it  a  direct  route  to  the  north,  and  the  Great  West- 
ern to  the  south  and  west,  and  also  to  the  metropolis.  The  city  of 
Hereford  itself  is,  also,  connected  with  the  Northwestern  line,  via  Mal- 
vern  and  Worcester,  thus  giving  the  county  every  means  of  supplying 
the  various  grazing  districts  of  England  with  numbers  of  excellent  store 
cattle,  as  also  for  the  dispatch  of  fat  animals  to  the  markets  of  the  great 
metropolis  and  the  teeming  populations  of  the  many  thriving  towns  in 
the  north. 

The  soil  of  the  county  is  varied,  the  larger  portion  is  a  red  clay,  as 
also  strong  loam.  Around  the  town  of  Koss,  where  some  of  the  choicest 
specimens  of  the  breed  are  found,  the  soil  is  a  loamy  gravel  or  light 
loam.  The  old  red  sandstone  forms  also  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
county,  and  some  of  the  hills  are  limestone.  The  valleys  are  particu- 
larly adapted  for  the  feeding  of  cattle,  as  they  are  moist  and  rich,  and 
the  soil  is  of  a  mixed  character,  from  the  continuous  washing  away  of 
the  hills,  and  the  debris  finding  its  way  to  the  lower  grounds,  and  form- 
ing a  rich  alluvial  deposit  well  suited  for  the  production  of  the  finest 
grasses.  The  hill-sides  and  higher  portions  of  the  county  are  eminently 
suited  for  the  breeding  and  rearing  of  cattle,  and  the  comparative  mild- 
ness of  the  climate  is  favorable  for  the  health  and  early  development 
of  the  calves. 

The  acreage  of  the  county  is  532,890  acres,  divided  into  or  about  the 
following  proportions: 

Orchards,  27,000 ;  woodlands,  37,000;  and  the  remainder  for  agricult- 
ural operations.  According  to  the  last  Government  returns  there  were 
under — 

Acres. 

Corn  crops...  95,299 

Green  crops 32,813 

Clover  and  rotation  grasses • 34, 108 

Permanent  pasture 205,601 

Bare  fallow 11,247 

Hops 6,416 

*  Juror  at  the  Paris  Exposition  of  1878. 


CATTLE    AXD    DAliiY    FARMING. 

It  will  therefore  be  seen  that  the  permanent  pasture  far  exceeds  all 
the  other  portions  of  the  land  put  together.  The  population  in  1881 
was  118,147.  Very  few  of  the  people  are  employed  in  manufactures, 
but  many  find,  employment  in  the  autumn  in  hop  and  fruit  gathering. 

THE  GREAT   CATTLE  FATE  IN  HEREFORD. 

The  city  of  Hereford  is  situated  somewhere  near  the  center  of  the 
county,  and  is  in  latitude  52°  4'  north,  and  longitude  2°  54'  west.  The 
climate  is  on  the  whole  temperate.  The  city  is  small,  and  has  been  the 
seat  of  a  bishopric  from  the  earliest  times,  for  more  than  twelve  hun- 
dred years.  The  cathedral  is  very  beautiful,  but  does  not  rank  among 
the  largest  of  the  English  fanes.  It  has  portions  of  Norman  work  in 
it,  and  since  its  restoration  has  been  made  one  of  the  handsomest  in- 
teriors in  the  Kingdom.  The  city  proper  is  rather  poor,  but  some  of  the 
streets  and  the  market  place  are  large  and  spacious,  and  at  fair  time 
their  appearance  is  very  wonderful,  every  portion  of  the  streets,  even 
up  to  the  cathedral  yard  itself,  is  crowded  with  the  "white-faced  beau- 
ties "of  the  county;  while  Shropshire,  Monmouthshire,  Breconshire,  and 
even  Gloucestershire  send  their  contingents.  It  is  indeed  a  remark- 
able sight,  being  different  to  anything  of  its  class  in  England,  as  the 
thousands  of  cattle  brought  together  are  all  of  one  type,  deep  brownish- 
reds  with  white  faces,  and  some  other  portions  of  the  body  and  tips  of 
tail  white.  There  is  no  interspersing  of  Shorthorns  or  other  breeds, 
an  occasional  Devon  is  seen,  but  that  seems  to  be  an  accident,  and  the 
shouting  of  drovers,  the  bellowing  of  the  cattle,  and  the  general  hum  of 
conversation  whilst  the  deals  are  made,  forma  singular  and  very  amus- 
ing sight.  The  great  fair  takes  place  in  the  third  week  in  October,  and 
as  many  as  from  8,000  to  9,000  head  of  cattle  have  been  brought  for  sale 
during  that  time.  Some  years  ago  dealers  like  Carwandine,  Parding- 
ton,  Jones,  Knight,  and  Price  were  accustomed  to  bring  some  hundreds, 
and  generally  sold  them  to  .the  graziers  of  the  midlands  or  to  other 
dealers  who  brought  them  up  to  the  great  markets  at  Banbury,  Ayles- 
bury,  and  Northampton,  where  there  was  always  a  ready  sale.  The 
trade  now  seems  quite  changed,  and  but  few  good  animals  ever  reach 
the  midland  markets,  as  the  graziers  themselves  go  down  by  rail  in  a 
few  hours  and  buy  largely  of  the  breeders,  or  dealers,  who  get  together 
on  their  own  premises  lots  of  from  30  to  100  for  their  selection,  and  it 
is  only  rarely  that  men  can  be  suited  at  the  old  markets. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  HEREFORD  BREED. 

I  am  greatly  indebted  to  the  writings  of  the  late  Mr.  Dixon,  a  well- 
known  agricultural  writer,  for  much  of  the  information  contained  in 
this  paper,  as  well  as  to  my  good  friend  Mr.  Duckham,  member  of  Par- 
liament for  Herefordshire,  who  was  the  editor  of  the  Hereford  Herd- 
Book,  and  who  has  clone  as  much,  or  perhaps  more  than  any  other  man, 
to  bring  this  noble  race  of  cattle  prominently  before  the  public  at  the 
present  time,  who  has  given  me  much  valuable  information,  and  I  can- 
not do  wrong  in  quoting  from  these  most  reliable  authorities  for  many 
statements  which  I  shall  make  in  this  paper.  I  will  also  give  my  own 
personal  experience  as  a  grazier,  and  judge  at  the  royal  and  other 
agricultural  shows,  where  I  had  many  opportunities  of  getting  well 
acquainted  with  this  breed. 

Old  Fuller,  who  was  a  quaint  writer  of  more  than  two  hundred  years 
ago,  says  of  Herefordshire,  "that  it  doth  share  as  deep  as  any  county  in 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  183 

the  alphabet  of  our  English  commodities,  though  exceeding  in  W.  for 
wood,  wheat,  wool,  and  water,"  and  u  that  its  wheat  was  worthy  to  jostle 
in  pureness  with  that  of  Heston,  in  Middlesex,  which  furnished  man- 
chets  for  the  kings  of  England,  and  its  Wye  salmon  were  in  season  all 
the  year  long."  And  before  his  day  u  painful  Master  Camden"  described 
the  county  as  "not  willingly  content  to  be  accounted  secondshire  for 
matters  of  fruitfulness."  Yet  both  writers  are  silent  as  to  cattle,  and 
Drayton  sang  of  "  fair  Suffolk's  maids  and  milk,"  of  the  hogs  of  Hamp- 
shire, the  calves  of  Essex,  and  how 

Rich  Buckingham  doth  bear 
The  name  of  "Bread  and  Beef;" 

yet  he  says  nothing  of  these  attributes  of  Herefordshire. 

Many  writers  were  of  opinion  that  the  Herefords  were  descended  from 
cattle  from  Devon  and  Normandy,  which  were  of  a  deep  reddish  brown 
color,  and  that  the  white  faces  were  an  accident  from  a  singular  sport 
of  the  breeding  of  a  white-faced  bull  by  a  noted  breeder  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, Mr.  Tully,  of  Huntington,  near  Hereford.  The  story  I  have  heard 
related  as  follows :  That  the  cow-man  came  to  him,  on  his  coming  oufc 
of  church  one  Sunday,  and  told  him  that  his  favorite  cow,  who  was 
daily  expecting  to  calve,  had  produced  a  bull-calf  with  a  white  face,  and 
this  had  never  been  known  before.  Eeport  says  the  master  ordered  it 
at  once  to  be  killed,  as  he  dared  not  let  it  be  known  that  he  had  such  a 
stain  of  blood  in  his  well-known  herd ;  but  the  man  begged  him  to  go 
and  see  it,  as  it  was  the  finest  calf  he  had  ever  seen.  Mr.  Tully,  when 
he  had  seen  it,  agreed  with  his  man  that  it  was  a  wonder,  and  that  he 
would,  out  of  curiosity,  rear  it.  He  did  so,  and  he  proved  to  be  a  very 
remarkably  fine  animal,  and  he  used  him  on  all  his  best  cows,  and  his 
progeny  became  celebrated  for  their  white  faces.  Many  old  chroniclers 
say  that  the  county  was  noted  for  its  breed  of  white  cattle  on  the  banks 
of  the  Wye  as  far  back  as  the  tenth  century,  but  they  had  red  ears, 
and  it  is  recorded  that  Lord  Scudamore  in,  or  about  the  year  1660,  in- 
troduced some  red  cows,  with  white  faces,  from  Flanders,  and  this  may 
have  been  the  reason  that  the  noted  Tully  bull,  after  a  lapse  of  more 
than  a  hundred  years,  might  have  cropped  up,  as  a  sport,  from  the  well- 
known  deep  red  cattle  of  the  country.  It  must  not  be  considered  that 
the  white  face  is  the  only  type  of  the  purity  of  this  breed,  as  the  mot- 
tled face  is  considered  by. many  breeders  as  of  greater  value  than  the 
pure  white,  and  I  can  myself  testify  that  some  of  the  finest  cattle  I  ever 
grazed,  and  some  of  the  best  I  ever  saw,  have  been  mottled-faced  and 
light-brindled ;  in  fact  those  of  the  last-named  type  have  shown  the 
greatest  aptitude  to  fatten,  on  the  grass,  of  any,  and  many  graziers  have 
told  me  the  same. 

Mr.  Eyton,  of  Eyton  Hall,  Salop,  was  the  founder  of  the  Hereford 
Herd-Book  in  1845,  and  when  he  commenced  it,  he  found  it  necessary 
to  divide  the  Herefords  into  four  distinct  classes,  viz,  the  mottled-faced, 
the  dark-gray,  the  light-gray  or  white,  and  the  red  with  whiteface.  Yet, 
after  the  lapse  of  only  thirty-eight  years,  people  question  the  purity  of 
the  breed,  if  they  have  not  the  characteristics  of  the  well-known  white 
face  and  markings. 

Mr.  Duckharn  says,  "the  present  uniformity  of  the  color  is  due  to  the 
influence  of  the  bull,"  and  this  is  a  remarkable  corroboration  of  my 
views,  expressed  in  a  paper  on  "  Breeding,  facts  and  principles,"  which 
I  read  at  a  meeting  of  the  Central  Farmers'  Club,  some  few  years  since, 


184  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

when  I  propounded  the  dictum  (which,  by  the  bye,  was  not  new),  « that 
the  male  exercised  the  external  characteristics,  and  the  internal  organ- 
ization followed  the  female,"  in  nearly  every  class  of  animal.  Long  be- 
fore the  commencement  of  the  herd-book  the  Herefords  had  made  •«  a 
reputation  and  a  name,"  by  being  continually  successful  at  the  Smith- 
field  Club  annual  fat  cattle  show,  from  its  establishment,  in  1799,  by 
Mr.  Westcar,  of  Creslow,  near  Aylesbury,  Bucks,  and  who,  for  twenty 
years  in  succession,  won  the  premium  prize  with  a  Hereford  ox,  against 
all  kinds  of  cattle.  I  had  not  an  opportunity  of  knowing  Mr.  Westcar, 
as  he  died  before  my  day,  but  I  had  been  for  many  years  on  intimate  terms 
with  his  relative  and  "successor,  Mr.  II.  .Rowland,  who  gave  me  many 
interesting  stories  of  Mr.  Westcar,  and  who  was,  undoubtedly,  the  first 
man  to  -bring  the  Herefords  to  the  front,  against  all  the  world.  I  re- 
member Mr.  Rowland  telling  me,  whilst  standing  in  the  midst  of  the 
far-famed  Creslow  Great  Ground,  and  on  the  spot,  marked  by  a  clump 
of  trees,  where  Mr.  Westcar's  lifeless  body  was  found,  he  having  fallen 
dead  from  his  horse,  how  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
last  century,  went  down  with  Mr.  Westcar  to  Hereford  in  his  carriage 
and  four  post-horses,  taking  two  days  for  the  journey,  and  stopping  one 
night  on  the  road  at  the  well-known  country  inn,  the  Staple  Hall,  at 
Wituey,  and  accompanied  by  Lord  Burners,  in  another  carriage  and 
four,  with  some  ladies  and  other  members  of  their  families,  to  attend 
the  great  lair  at  Hereford,  and  where  the  duke  desired  Mr.  Westcar 
to  order  dinner  for  n  hundred  persons  at  the  principal  hotel,  and  to  in- 
vite all  the  more  celebrated  breeders  and  dealers  to  meet  him.  He  de- 
scribed the  annoyance  of  some  of  the  dealers  at  the  noblemen  being 
brought  down  to  see  these  grand  bullocks,  which  they  had  only  seen  in 
the  Creslow  pastures,  as  it  bad  had  the  effect  of  raising  the  price  of  the 
cattle  in  the  fair  at  least  £1  per  head.  After  dinner  his  grace  and 
Lord  Berners  announced  their  desire  to  have  from  ten  to  twenty  of  the 
best  cows  that  could  bo  found  and  two  bulls,  to  bring  into  Bedford- 
shire, there  to  establish  a  herd  on  their  estates.  Lord  Berners,  who 
was  a  breeder  of  Longhorns,  gave  up  the  breed  and  took  to  Here- 
fords. This  visit  of  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  with  the  continued  success 
of  the  breed  in  the  show  yard,  at  Sinithfleld,  by  Mr.  Westcar,  brought 
them  prominently  into  notice,  and  firmly  established  their  merits.  Sir 
Brandreth  Gibbs,the  honorary  secretary  of  the  Smithfield  Club,  in  his 
history  of  the  club,  states  that  at  their  first  show  Mr.  Westcar's  prize 
ox  measured  8  feet  11  inches  long,  6  feet  7  inches  high,  10  feet  4  inches 
girth,  and  that  he  was  sold  for  100  guineas.  This  animal  was  bred  by 
Mr.  Tully,  of  Huntington,  and  weighed  247  stone,  dead  weight,  8 
pounds  to  the  stone.  Enormous  as  the  dimensions  of  this  ox  were,  they 
were  far  exceeded  by  another  Hereford,  fed  by  Mr.  Grace,  of  Putlowes, 
near  Aylesbury,  which  was  7  feet  high,  12  feet  4  inches  girth,  and 
weighed  2CO  stones,  of  8  pounds,  dead  weight.  Mr.  Duckham  mentions 
that  about  the  years  1812  or  1813  Mr.  Potter  sold  for  Mr.  Westcar  at  the 
Metropolitan  Christmas  market  fifty  Hereford  oxen  that  averaged  50 
guineas  each,  making  2,500  guineas ;  and  he  mentions  that  Mr.  Smythies, 
of  Marlow,  Salop,  obtained  the  following  extract  from  Mr.  Westcar's 
book  for  the  sale  of  twenty  Hereford  oxen  at  different  periods  from 
1799  to  1811,  and  which  I  can  corroborate,  as  the  same  was  shown  me 
by  Mr.  Rowland,  when  visiting  him  at  Creslow.  The  list  was  confined 
to  those  which  sold  for  £100  and  upwards : 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM. 


185 


Date. 

Oxen  .sold. 

Value. 

Deo    jo  1799 

2  0x611  to  Mr.  ChsiTvrnan  .  . 

£200 

Di  o      4  1800 

147 

Dec    1'J  1HOO 

1  ox  to  Mr.  Uari'inivtou                               .                                                                  . 

ivo 

Nov    20  1801 

0  OX*1!!  tM  MfiSSi'H,  0  iJ-l^tt  fc  f^«    

630 

Nov    -     1802 

1  ox 

100 

Nov   31  IHO'J 

126 

Dec      4  1802 

2  oxoii  to  Mr.  Horwood  ....... 

200 

Dec.    —.1803 

1  ox  to  Mr.  Chapman  .............. 

100 

Dec.   19  1803 

l  ox  io  Mr.  Ttpyunlcis 

105 

Dec.  19,1803 

1  ox  to  Mr.  Giblott  

105 

Dec.     5,1801 

.  ..do  

105 

Df»c      4  1805 

do 

300 

Xov.  20  1811 

1  ox  to  Mr.  Cbindlcr 

105 

The  whole  20  sold  for  £2,123,  or  an  average  of  £100  Gs.  each. 

I  have  also  seen  at  Mr.  Ledbrook's,  who  succeeded  Mr.  Grace  at  Put- 
lowes  a  few  years  since,  when  the  price  of  meat  was  lower  than  in  the  be- 
ginning of  the  century,  50  oxen  tied  up  for  Chistraas  at  the  end  of  Novo;n- 
ber,  for  which  be  had  been  bid  £2,500;  the  price  was  rather  under  5s.  p^r 
stone,  but  this  would  have  made  them  average  over  200  stone  per  head. 
The  class  of  animal  I  have  been  describing  is  now  no  more.  They  were 
five-year  old  worked  beasts,  and  even  older,  which  had  been  for  two  or 
three  years  harnessed  to  the  yoke,  and  had  therefore  attained  great  size. 
Working  in  the  plow  is  now  comparatively  rare,  and  early  maturity  is 
the  aim  of  all  the  best  farmers  in  England,  and  the  Hereford  breeders 
are  not  likely  to  be  left  behind.  It  is  a  rare  thing  nowadays  to  purchase 
a  Hereford  steer  at  a  fair  over  three  years  old.  When  I  began  farming, 
thirty  years  ago,  I  bought  a  lot  of  beautiful  three-year-old  Hereford 
steers  in  October  at  £13  105.  each,  in  poor  condition.  I  gave  them  the 
run  of  the  straw  yard,  and  3  pounds  of  oil-cake  per  day,  and  turned 
them  out  to  grass  in  May,  and  sold  them  in  August  and  September  at 
from  £23  to  £24  each,  giving  me  some  excellent  manure  and  a  good 
profit  on  the  animals.  The  price  of  this  class  of  beast  rapidly  rose,  and 
now  they  can  scarcely  be  bought  under  £21  to  £22  each,  and  as  they 
only  make  about  £20  or  £27  each  when  off  the  grass,  they  do  not  pay 
enough.  I  once  went  to  a  Hereford  fair  at  Easter  and  bought  10  of  the 
finest  old  worked  beasts  I  ever  saw  at  £29  10s.  each.  They  were  large, 
fine-framed  animals,  and  when  they  arrived  at  Aylesbury  Baron  Mayer 
de  Rothschild  saw  them  and  begged  I  would  let  him  have  them,  and  I 
consented  on  condition  that  he  gave  me  a  round  of  one  of  them  for  my 
Christmas  dinner  the  same  year.  He  took  them  to  Mentmore,  and  some 
made  £46  to  £47  each  at  Christmas,  and  others  went  off  the  grass  in 
October  at  £38  to'  £40  each,  but  such  aged  beasts  are  not  found  now. 
Amongst  the  most  noted  graziers  of  these  cattle  was  the  late  Mr.  Senior, 
of  Bronghton  pastures,  near  Aylesbury.  This  gentleman  was  a  very 
successful  exhibitor  of  Herefords  after  Mr.  Westcar's  death,  but  of  late 
years  he  grazed  Sussex  beasts,  as  he  could  not  get  the  worked  animals 
from  Herefordshire.  Mr.  Duckham  and  other  writers  on  Herefordshire 
cattle  say  that  the  county  is  not  by  any  means  a  good  grazing  district, 
but  eminently  adapted  for  breeding  and  rearing  cattle,  and  .that  no  class 
of  animal  thrives  so  well,  when  changed  on  to  the  fine  pastures  of  Buck- 
inghamshire, Leicestershire,  and  ^Northamptonshire. 

As  Mr.  Westcar's  name  and  his  residence  at  Creslow  has  been  so 
often  quoted  by  all  writers  upon  the  Herefords,  I  must  be  pardoned  for 
giving  a  slight  sketch  of  this  famous  grazing  district.  "The  great 
ground,"  as  it  is  called  at  Creslow,  is,  as  before  stated,  about  330  acres 
and  is  very  undulating,  and  bounded  on  two  sides  by  a  brook,  a  tribu- 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY    FARMING. 

tary  of  the  Thames,  and  on  the  other  two  sides  by  a  large  double  ox- 
fence,  with  large  elm  trees  affording  shade  to  the  numerous  head  of 
cattle  grazing  there.  I  have  seen  nearly  250  head  of  horned  stock  and 
600  sheep  and  lambs,  with  20  mares  and  foals,  grazing  in  this  one  field, 
and  all  getting  fat.  It  is  jocosely  said  that  the  cattle  are  turned  into 
the  field  in  May  and  by  the  time  they  have  walked  around  the  in- 
closure  they  come  out  fit  for  the  butcher.  The  old  mansion  had  for- 
merly  been  a  monastery,  and  the  estate  belongs  to  the  Lord  de  Clifford, 
in  whose  family  it  has  been  for  some  centuries,  and  it  is  stated  that 
Eosamoud  de  Clifford,  «  Fair  Bosamond,"  was  born  there.  Nothing  can 
exceed  the  rich  pastoral  beauty  of  this  district.  From  the  upper  ground 
the  eye  wanders  over  the  far- famed  vale  of  Ayle&bury,  the  old  town, 
the  "  JEgelsbireg"  of  the  Saxons,* standing  in  the  midst  the  rich  past- 
ures of  Whitechurch ;  Quarrendon,  with  its  ruined  chapel  of  the  fifteenth 
century;  and  Fleet  Marston,  in  which  parish  is  Putlowes,  formerly  men- 
tioned as  the  rival  of  Creslow  as  a  feeding  pasture,  and  a  rare  tract  of 
grass  land  stretching  away  for  more  than  15  miles  along  the  valley  of 
the  Thames. 

Sir  Brandreth  Gibbs,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Smithfield  Club,"  men- 
tions an  incident  of  some  interest  in  1825.  There  was  a  sweepstakes 
between  three  Herefords  belonging  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford  and  three 
Durharns  belonging  to  the  right  honorable  Charles  Arbuthuot,  which 
was  won  by  the  Herefords. 

Mr.  Duckham  says  that  from  the  establishment  of  the  Smithfield  Club 
in  1799  to  1851  all  the  different  breeds  and  cross-breeds  were  shown 
together,  but  since  that  time  they  have  been  exhibited  in  distinct  classes. 
And,  as  far  as  can  be  learned,  during  the  time  they  were  shown  together 
the  Hereford  oxen  and  steers  won  185  prizes ;  the  Shorthorns,  82 ;  the 
Devons,  44 ;  the  Scotch,  43 ;  the  Sussex,  9 ;  the  Longhorns,  4,  and  the 
cross-breeds^  8  $  thus  showing  that  the  whole  of  the  prizes  won  by  all  the 
other  breeds  and  crosses  in  the  Kingdom  were  190,  or  only  5  in  excess 
of  the  number  registered  by  the  Herefords  alone. 

Mr.  Discau  says  that  during  fifty-three  years  to  1851  the  Shorthorns 
by  their  females  made  up  considerably  to  the  total  of  the  Herefords, 
as  they  numbered  174  prizes  to  the  Herefords  207. 

It  is  interesting  to  know  how  the  Herefords  have  retained  their  former 
renown,  by  their  comparatively  youthful  prowess  at  the  present  day. 
We  find  that  Mr.  Heath  showed  his  gray  beast  at  Birmingham,  whining 
first  honors,  with  a  girth  of  9  feet  7  inches  5  and  his  Hereford  cow  at 
three  years  and  ten  months  measured  9  feet  in  girth.  Mr.  Shirley's 
gold-medal  steer  at  two  years  and  seven  months  girthed  8  feet  7  inches. 
And  he  averred  that  up  to  seventeen  months  old  he  had  had  only  an 
ordinary  calf  and  stock  treatment.  It  will  therefore  be  seen  that  the 
breed  is  not  only  not  deteriorating  but  is  likely  to  maintain  its  position 
against  all  competitors. 

THE  HEREFORDS  AS  DAIRY  CATTLE. 

Having  5alu.  *v  muCu  of  the  feeding  qualities  of  these  animals,  I  must 
now  allude  to  their  milking  properties.  Generally  they  are  not  con- 
sidered such  good  "  fill-pails"  as  their  rivals  the  Shorthorns  or  Aryshires, 
nor  such  butter  producers  as  the  Channel  Islands  breeds,  yet  their 
butter-making  qualities  are  of  a  high  order.  I  quote  from  Mr.  Duck- 
ham,  who  says  Mr.  Bead,  of  Elkstone,  finds  the  Herefords  retain  their 
general  aptitude  to  fatten,  and  that  in  the  team  they  are  excellent  and 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  18  « 

that  they  have  been  used  for  dairy  purposes  for  nearly  fifty  years  on  the 
farm,  and  that  he  raises  his  calves  by  hand  after  a  few  days  old. 

Mr.  James  Mappowder,  of  Blandford,  Dorset,  says  that  Hereford 
dairies  are  becoming  very  common  in  that  county ;  that  they  let  nearly 
one  hundred  cows  to  dairy  people,  and  that  if  he  buys  one  of  any  other 
breed  to  fill  up  the  number  they  always  grumble.  His  system  is  to  let 
the  cows  at  so  much  p$r  year,  finding  them  in  land  and  making  the  hay ; 
the  calves  being  reared  by  hand  with  skim  milk  and  linseed  until  three 
months  old,  and  they  are  then  turned  out  to  pasture. 

Mr.  Olver,  of  Penhallow,  Cornwall,  says : 

I  rear  ray  calves  on  skim  milk.  It  is  generally  said  Hereford  cows  are  bad  milkers. 
That  is  contrary  to  my  experience.  My  cow  Patience,  bred  by  Mr.  Cooke,  of  More- 
ton  House,  bad  given  14  pounds  of  bntter  in  a  week,  and  Blossom,  bred  by  Mr.  Long- 
mere,  Buckton,  Salop,  gave  22  quarts  of  milk,  yielding  2£  pounds  of  butter  per  day. 

From  Ireland  and  Scotland  reports  show  that  excellent  results  have 
been  attained.  It  is  fair  to  say  that  my  own  experience  is  contrary  to 
the  opinion  that  they  are  better  for  the  dairy  than  Shorthorns,  as  when 
I  was  judge  of  cattle  at  Hereford,  some  few  years  since,  there  was  a 
milking  competition,  and  we  had  all  the  competitors  in  the  class  very 
carefully  milked,  and  both  the  first  prizes  were  obtained  by  Short-horns 
of  high  class  pedigree,  beating  all  competitors,  even  including  Ary shires 
and  Jerseys. 

THE  HEREFORD  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES. 

The  Herefords  have  proved  themselves  well  adapted  for  foreign  and 
colonial  countries.  Mr.  Stone,  of  Guelph,  Ontario,  says: 

I  am  an  extensive  breeder  of  Shorthorns,  •which  breed  I  think  very  highly  of;  but 
I  have  also  purchased  some  Herefords  from  Lord  Bateman's  and  Lord  Berwick's  herds, 
and  am  highly  pleased  with  them.  The  climate  is  very  variable,  varying  in  twenty- 
four  hours  from  30  to  40  degrees,  and  that  the  Herefords  stand  the  changes  equal  to 
any  breed. 

Mr.  Edwards,  Knockalva,  Jamaica,  says  that  for  many  years  they  had 
no  change  of  blood  till  1858,  when  Sir  Oliver  (1732)  and  Malcolm  (1646) 
were  imported,  and  that  they  did  the  greatest  service  in  the  island; 
that  this  breed  are  good  workers,  hardy,  and  of  great  aptitude  to  fat- 
ten. Mr.  Merryman,  of  Maryland,  and  Mr.  John  Johnston,  of  New  York, 
testified  to  the  breed  standing  the  variations  of  the  climate  remark- 
ably well.  Mr.  W.  Dangaii,  from  Hunter's  Eiver,  Australia,  in  addi- 
tion to  their  feeding  powers  and  hardiness  of  constitution,  found  they 
were  excellent  in  traveling  long  distances  and  that  they  woul,d  do  from 
250  to  300  miles  better  than  any  others.  I  have,  therefore,  shown  that 
the  Herefords  are  admirable  for  foreign  countries.  Amongst  the  most 
noted  strains  of  blood  I  find  from  Leopold  (1)  and  Wellington,  which 
bull  was  sold  in  1816  for  £283,  that  the  mottled  faces  are  mostly  de- 
scended, and  Victory,  which  was  a  dark  gray,  and  Ootmore  (376), which 
was  a  white-faced  bull,  and  Brockwood,  which  was  a  light  gray,  were 
all  specially  noticed  in  the  first  number  of  Mr.  Eyton's  herd-book. 

Mr.  Dixon  remarks  that  there  were  not  many  points  of  difference  be- 
tween the  dark  grays  and  the  mottle  faces,  the  latter  of  which  were 
known  as  Ben  Tomkins  sort,  and  the  Eev.  Mr.  Smythies,  of  The  Lynch, 
was  one  of  the  best  and  most  spirited  breeders  of  his  day,  and  offered 
to  show  a  hundred* Herefords  against  the  same  number  of  Shorthorns 
from  any  herd  in  England.  All  these  remarks  show  that  much  pains 
and  infinite  care  have  been  taken  in  perfecting  this  noble  breed,  and  for 
the  best  lines  of  blood  the  herd-book  must  be  consulted. 


188  CATTLE   AND  DAIRY 

The  breeders  put  their  heifers  to  the  bull  at  from  eighteen  months 
old  to  two  years,  and  the  calves  generally  run  by  the  side  of  their  dams 
for  several  months.  The  cows  are  put  to  the  bull  at  a  certain  time,  so 
that  they  may  generally  come  due  to  calve  in  the  early  spring,  and  to 
meet  the  grass ;  although  some  others  like  the  cows  to  calve  about 
October  and  November,  housing  the  calves,  and  keeping  them  on  with 
a  little  milk  and  cake,  so  as  to  be  strong  by  the  summer.  Some  breed- 
ers think  that  by  letting  the  calves  suck  the  mothers  it  prevents  their 
coining  into  season  for  the  bull  as  early  as  if  they  wore  weaned  at  once, 
but  from  inquiries  I  have  made  I  find  but  little  difference  in  it.  This 
is  contrary  to  my  own  and  some  other  breeders'  practice,  as  I  have  found 
the  cow  lies  barren,  especially  Shorthorns,  for  some  months  after  calv- 
ing if  the  calf  lies  night  and  day  with  the  dam.  Several  Hereford- 
shire breeders  are  in  the  habit  of  giving  their  calves,  at  a  very  early 
age,  good  old  beans,  which  should  be  given  whole,  and  in  a  few  clays 
they  begin  to  crack  them  after  rolling  them  about  in  tbeir  mouths,  and 
secreting  that  frothy  saliva  which  seems  to  be  so  coiidusive  to  a  calf's 
well  doing.  I  have  tried  the  plan  and  can  speak  highly  of  the  practice, 
no  food  can  be  better,  as  beaus  are  peculiarly  fitted  for  forming  bone 
and  muscle. 

On  the  whole,  I  believe  the  Hereford  breed,  as  a  flesh-forming  animal, 
is  second  to  no  breed  in  the  world.  The  meat  itself  is  equal,  when  well 
fed,  to  the  best  Scotch  or  Devon,  and  every  authority  proves  they  do 
well  when  imported  into  other  climes.  In  England  it  is  found  that  the 
best  grass  lands  are  most  calculated  for  their  flesh  development,  and 
when  tied  up,  liberally  fed,  and  well  cared  for,  they  can  hold  their  own 
in  the  show  yard  against  any  breed  in  the  country.  As  dairy  cattle 
the  Short-horns  beat  them,  but,  taking  all  things  into  consideration, 
England  may  well  be  proud  of  her  white-faced  Herefords. 

JOHN  KERSLEY  FOWLER. 

PREBENDAL  FARM,  NEAR  AYLESBURY, 

January  7,  1884. 


COMPARATIVE  MERITS  (XF  BRITISH  CATTLE. 

REPORT  PREPARED   FOR    CONSUL   DOCKERY,    OF  LEEDS,   J?F   MR.  JOSEPH  LAY 
FAULKNER,  VETERINARY  SURGEON,  SOUTH  MILFORD. 

SHORTHORNS. 

In  submitting  a  report  of  the  merits  and  propensities  of  our  various 
British  breeds  of  cattle,  I  will  commence  my  remarks  by  giving  a  brief 
sketch  of  the  modern  history  of  the  Shorthorn,  or  Durham  cattle—so 
termed  from  the  parent  stock  inhabiting  the  county  of  Durham — which 
have  special  claims  upon  the  attention  of  both  home  and  foreign  breed- 
ers inasmuch  as  it  has  the  power  of  more  easily  adapting  itself  to  all 
soils,  climates,  and  circumstances  than  any  other  animal  of  the  bovine 
breed,  and  contributes  a  greater  weight  of  prime  beef,  butter,  and  cheese 
to  our  markets,  directly  and  by  their  influential  crosses,  than  half  a  dozen 
of  the  other  established  breeds  put  together.  The  combination  of  their 
milking  and  feeding  properties  fully  entitles  them  to  the  premiership  of 
the  general  purpose  cattle.  If  we  take  London  and  other  great  dairies 
as  a  criterion  of  the  milking  qualities,  we  have  abundant  proofs  of  their 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  189 

excellent  properties,  as  at  least  90  per  cent,  are  Shorthorns,  which  per- 
form the  double  duty  of  milking  and  feeding  simultaneously  and  when 
dry  are  fit  for  slaughter.  The  recent  scrutinizing  test  which  they  have 
undergone  during  the  late  competition  for  dairy  honors  at  the  Eoyal 
Agricultural  Society's  show  held  at  York,  in  July,  1883,  and  in  the  Lon- 
don dairy  show,  in  October  last,  prove  their  worth.  At  both  of  these 
places  the  first  and  second  prizes  were  triumphantly  carried  oil'  by  Short- 
horns; and  as  an  additional  proof  of  the  Shorthorns7  superiority,  the 
Queen's  two  years  and  eight  months  old  pure  Shorthorn  heifer  eclipsed 
all  other  breeds,  ages,  weights,  and  sex,  and  deservedly  carried  off  the 
much-coveted  champion  prize  at  the  fat-cattle  show  held  in  London 
December,  1883.  The  dairy  tests  were  conducted  on  the  most  scientific 
principles,  and  leave  no  doubt  as  to  a  correct  decision  having  been  arrived 
at.  I  do  not  think  that  1he  most  essential  properties  of  the  pure  Short- 
horns are  so  universally  known  as  they  ought  to  be.  The  foreign  buyers, 
whose  tastes  have  been  carefully  studied,  do  not,  as  a  rule,  make  milking 
properties  a  sine  qua  non,  but  give  their  favor  to  attractive  appearances, 
and,  above  all,  long  ancestral  line,  without  which  in  their  eyes  no  ani- 
mal is  worth  their  notice.  Now,  many  of  our  first-class  breeders  have 
neglected  the  careful  cultivation  of  dairy  productions,  and  obliterated 
them  altogether  in  some  of  the  purest  and  most  valuable  breeds.  These 
proceedings  have  had  a  damaging  influence  on  the  breed  generally.  In- 
stances are  not  wanting  where  paper  pedigrees  have  been  held  as  the 
only  virtue  to  be  studied,  while  nature's  bountiful  provisions  have  dis- 
appeared. Refinement  has  its  limits,  and  when  pushed  beyond  those 
limits  degeneracy  is  the  result,  and  the  breed  is  often  condemned  when 
a  jury  would  find  a  true  bill  against  the  breeders. 

Forty  years  ago  some  of  the  highest  bred  Shorthorns  were  extraordi- 
nary dairy  cows  and  possessed  great  aptitude  to  fatten  when  dry,  but, 
though  the  great  demand  for  showy  animals  has  somewhat  interfered 
with  the  careful  cultivation  of  these  properties,  which  consequently  have 
been  slightly  impaired,  this  only  exists  when  breeders  have  not  ac- 
counted dairy  capabilities  of  sufficient  interest  and  importance  to  occupy 
their  serious  attention.  Besides,  to  do  so  would  entail  an  infusion  of 
new  blood,  which  would  incur  the  disapproval  of  a  clique  of  con- 
noisseurs, who  might  declare  the  innovation  an  unpardonable  departure 
from  the  well-defined  paper  line  and  rule  system  of  breeding  so  exten- 
sively practiced  by  some  of  our  pioneers,  who,  unfortunately  for  the 
cause,  have  paid  too  little  attention  to  the  dictates  of  nature.  The  best 
all  round  general  purpose  cow  can  be  selected  from  the  old  Tees  water 
Shorthorns,  which  are  still  to  be  found  in  great  numbers  inhabiting  the 
banks  of  the  river  Tees,  in  the  north  of  Yorkshire.  These  are  the  parent 
stock  of  our  most  refined  breeds  of  Shorthorns,  and  still  retains  the 
substance,  constitution,  and  udder  for  which  the  breed  has  long  been 
distinguished.  From  this  foundation,  with  proper  selections,  a  superior 
class  ot  animals  can  be  raised  and  modeled  to  suit  circumstances. 

The  possession  of  so  many  worthy  properties  admirably  adapt  them 
for  exportntion,  and  I  know  of  no  other  breed  that  I  can  be  more  confi- 
dent in  recommending  to  the  notice  of  foreign  buyers.  The  male  ani- 
mals of  fehis  breed  are  most  impressive  sires,  and  stamp  their  own 
characteristics  on  the  progeny  in  a  marked  degree,  which  is,  perhaps, 
more  distinguished  abroad  than  at  home. 

One  of  our  earliest  improvers  of  the  Tees  water  Shorthorns  was 
Charles  Collings,  who  with  his  brother  became  a  considerable  farmer 
about  1770,  but  Charles  has  the  credit  as  an  early  founder  of  this  breed. 


190  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

In  the  year  1810  his  herd  was  sold  by  auction  with  the  following  re- 
sult : 

£     a. 

*7cows 2,802    9 

11  bulls 2»361    9 

7  bull  calves  under  twelve  months 

7  heifer  calves 

Total 6,804  11 

Since  then  a  descendant  of  a  calf  sold  at  this  sale  (Young  Duchess) 
has  realized  more  money  than  the  whole  herd  was  sold  for.  One,  two, 
and  three  thousand  guineas  were  frequently  paid  lor  members  of  that 
tribe  or  family,  of  which  there  is  a  goodly  number  in  England  at  the 
present  time  and  which  are  still  held  in  high  estimation. 

The  influence  of  a  good  sire  is  shown  by  the  following  statement :  A 
remarkable  animal  termed  the  Durham  ox  was  got  by  one  of  the  bulls 
sold  at  the  above  sale  out  of  a  common  cow.  The  ox  was  sold  for 
public  exhibition,  from  which  circumstance  their  sprung  up  a  great  de- 
sire to  possess  and  improve  the  Shorthorns  in  distant  quarters.  The 
ox,  after  being  exhibited  for  several  years,  was  slaughtered  after  two 
months  illness,  which  reduced  its  flesh  considerably,  but  its  dead  weight 
of  meat,  without  tallow  or  offal,  was  2,322  pounds.  Many  other  in- 
stances of  great  weignt  can  be  recorded,  viz  : 

Pounds. 

Live  weight  of  steers  under  four  years  old 2, 212 

Live  weight  of  heifers  under  four  years  old 2, 04< 

Live  weight  of  cows 2,352 

Average  dead  weight : 

Of  matured  ox  when  fed  in  the  ordinary  way  for  market 

Of  heifer  when  fed  in  1  ho  ordinary  way  for  market 800 

Of  cow  when  fed  in  the  ordinary  way  for  market 880 

Milk : 

Annual  average  weight .' - 8,  000 

Weight  to  1  pound  of  butter 

Weight  to  1  pound  of  cheese 10 

Soil.—  Alluvial  and  light  loam  in  East  Riding ;  in  West  Biding,  brown  clay. 
Climate. — Mean  temperature,  49°.  4. 
Color. — Red,  white,  and  roan. 

HEEEFOKDS. 

Herefords  are  an  old  established  breed  of  fcigh  renown,  whose  fame 
has  gone  to  the  antipodes  as  possessing  many  highly  meritorious  prop- 
erties, the  principal  of  which  is  its  fattening  propensities  and  high  qual- 
ity of  beef.  A  hardy,  strong  constitution  seems  to  pervade  the  whole 
family,  as  no  signs  of  delicacy  or  degeneracy  ever  appear  in  their  ranks. 
These  characteristics  commend  them  to  the  notice  of  home  graziers  and 
breeders  abroad.  For  several  years  past  there  has  been  a  rush  to  se- 
cure the  best  specimens  on  offer  for  export,  and  some  hundreds  of  fine 
animals  have  recently  been  consigned  to  enterprising  breeders  across 
the  Atlantic.  The  chief  merit  of  the  Hereford  is  their  beef  produc- 
tions ;  they  have  little  pretension  to  the  supply  of  the  dairy.  The  calves, 
as*a  rule,  run  with  their  mothers,  whose  parental  duties  in  many  cases 
are  heavily  taxed,  but  this  defect  is  occupying  the  attention  of  many 
breeders,  and  it  can  be  removed  in  time  by  careful  selections  and  proper 
observance  in  mating  them.  They  inhabit  large  tracts  of  laud  partially 
surrounded  by  the  Welsh  hills — land  which  is  well  calculated  to  develop 
its  true  character  to  full  perfection.  The  breed  has  long  been  ascribed 
the  best  in  the  west  of  England.  The  uniform,  character  has  become  a 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  191 

stamped  standard  and  is  universally  acknowledged,  and  is  found  to 
answer  admirably  in  Australia,  New  Zealand,  Canada,  and  the  United 
States.  They  are  very  quiet  and  contented  animals,  and  stand  a  long 
sea  voyage  well,  without  falling  off  in  condition.  Death  or  difficulty 
rarely  occurs  in  transit.  The  origin  of  the  Hereford  was  from  the  cattle 
of  the  county,  from  which  selections  were  made,  and  the  breed  as  it 
now  stands  owes  all  its  reputation  to  modern  changes.  In  the  latter 
part  of  last  century  a  Mr.  Tornpkins  started  a  system  of  breeding  which 
ultimately  exercised  great  influence  on  the  stock  of  this  paj?t  of  England. 
Size,  adaptation  to  the  dairy,  and  the  purposes  of  labor  were  the  chief 
properties  studied  by  the  breeders.  Two  cows  fell  into  the  hands  of 
Mr.  Tompkins  which  had  an  extraordinary  aptitude  to  become  fat, 
on  which  account  he  retained  them  for  breeding.  One  of  them,  with 
more  white  on,  he  named  Pigeon,  and  the  other,  a  rich  red  with  spotted 
face,  he  called  Mottle.  Mr.  Tompkins  established  his  Herefords  from 
tfce  existing  breed  of  the  county,  and  not  by  mixture  with  dissimilar 
kinds  from  other  quarters,  and  although  the  improvement  commenced 
in  the  last  century,  the  Hereford  breed  was  late  in  being  prominently 
brought  before  the  public  as  one  possessed  of  the  valuable  properties 
for  which  it  is  now  so  justly  esteemed. 

Pounds. 
Live  weight  of  four-year-old  ox  at  Sffiithfield  show,  December,  Ib83  (offal,  8 

pounds  to  the  score) 2, 486 

Live  weight  of  four-year-old  heifer  at  Smithfield  show,  December,  1833  (offal,  8 

pounds  to  the  score) 2, 127 

Live  weight  of  four-year-old  cow  at  Smithtield  show,  December  1883  (offal,  8 

pounds  to  the  score) 2,329 

Milk,  annual  average 3,000 

Soil. — Deep-red  loam  and  clay,  lighter  and  poorer  near  the  Welsh  hills. 
Climate.— Mean  temperature,^0/?. 

Color. — Ked,  with  white  face  and%Yhite  streak  down  back,  and  a  broader  one  on  the 
belly. 
An  old  established  breed,  without  foreign  admixture. 

DEVONS. 

The  Devon  is  an  old  and  well-defined  breed,  and  is  honored  with 
standing  first  in  the  catalogue  at  the  Christmas  fat-cattle  show  in  London, 
where  it  has  been  known  to  obtain  the  highest  honors.  They  are  to  be 
found  in  the  greatest  purity  and  perfection  in  the  northern  part  of 
their  county  and  a  portion  of  Somersetshire.  They  are  very  compact 
and  graceful  in  appearance  and  light  of  bone.  Their  uniform,  deep-red 
color,  peculiar  to  the  North  Devon,  goes  to  prove  their  freedom  from 
any  admixture  or  foreign  element,  which  gives  them  a  high  standard  of 
purity. 

The  purest  bred  ones  are  somewhat  wanting  in  size  for  general  pur- 
poses, and  their  improvement  is  slightly  impeded  by  show-yard  decis- 
ions, which  are  invariably  in  favor  of  small,  compact  animals,  which  no 
doubt  are  admirably  adapted  for  their  own  locality,  where  they  graze 
well  and  produce  an  excellent  quality  of  beef,  but  they  cannot  surpass 
(as  many  of  their  ardent  admirers  try  to  maintain)  some  animals  of 
greater  weight  in  arriving  at  maturity  at  an  earlier  age.  Therefore  they 
are  not  eagerly  sought  after  for  rich  feeding  districts  in  other  quarters. 
There  are  cases  in  which  great  weights  have  been  attained  by  single 
animals,  but  this  is  not  a  characteristic  of  the  breed,  and  will  be  al- 
luded to  hereafter,  The  stronghold  of  the  pure  North  Devons  is  not 
the  richest  parts  of  Devonshire  and  Somersetshire.  The  soil  is  light 
and  varied,  in  some  parts  hilly  and  uneven. 


192  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

In  the  richer  alluvial  plains  and  near  the  coast  a  heavier  and  coarser 
class  of  Devons  are  kept,  for  which  no  special  attention  is  paid  to  ped- 
igree or  reiiuemcnt.  Some  splendid  steers  of  this  (as  well  as  the  North 
Devon)  class  reach  the  London  market,  where  they  soon  change  hands 
at  remunerative  prices. 

North  Devon  is  a  breeding  and  grazing  district,  calves  are  mostly 
reared  with  the  cows,  and  often  a  greater  number  of  calves  are  seen  in 
the  Held  than  cows.  The  yearling  heifers  run  out  through  the  winter, 
only  receiving^  little  assistance  during  a  storm.  The  yearling  steers 
being  on  their  way  to  the  butcher,  are  kept  in  yards  and  receive  a 
moderate  allowance  of  straw  and  turnips  during  the  winter  months,  and 
have  liberal  treatment  until  ready  for  the  butcher  at  three  and  four 
years  old. 

The  quantity  and  quality  of  Mr.  Skinner's  cow  Myrtle,  during  the 
trials  at  the  London  show,  was  a  great  surprise  to  all  who  were  not 
thoroughly  acquainted  the  full  capacity  of  the  Devons.  The  cow  was 
milked  at  8.30  a.  m.,  and  again  at  7.30  p.  in.,  when  the  result  was  26 
pounds  of  milk  which  gave  14.75  percentage,  5.28  of  fat;  total  award, 
87.80.  Age  of  cow,  four  and  one-half  years.  She  calved  on  July  4, 
and  was  tested  on  October  3,  1883.  The  solids,  which  are  in  excess  of 
the  Jersey,  is  a  great  achievement,  and  an  event  worthy  of  notice  in 
agriculture,  together  with  the  extraordinary  weights  attained  by  some 
highly  forced  animals.  This  cow  Myrtle  gave  50  pounds  of  milk  per 
day  for  a  considerable  period  after  calving  (second  calf),  and  milked 
for  over  a  year  at  her  first  calf.  The  journey  to  London  and  other  ex- 
citing causes,  which  are  unavoidable  in  a  show-yard  career,  would  to 
some  extent  tend  to  reduce  the  quantity  of.  milk. 

The  largest  Devons  and  many  of  the  best  milkers  are  seldom  seen  in 
the  show  yard,  as  prizes,  as  before  stated,  generally  go  to  the  most  sym- 
metrical. The  late  Mr.  Skinner,  father  of  the  present  Mr.  Skinner,  ex- 
hibitor of  the  cow  Myrtle,  showed  some  Devon  oxen  in  1853  (winning 
at  Bridgewater  and  Taunton  Christmas  meetings)  scaling  1,600  pounds 
dead  weight.  This  weight  is  enormous.  These  animals  had,  no  doubt, 
been  employed  in  farm  labor  for  some  years,  and  then  forced  for  show. 
Mr.  Skinner  has  recently  sold  a  bullock  under  three  years  old,  weigh- 
ing (dead  weight)  half  a  ton.  The  top  average  weight  for  well  fed  steers 
three  to  four  years  old,  is  720  pounds,  dead  weight  ;  some  reach  1,000 
pounds  with  extra  attention  ;  but  720  pounds  may  safely  be  taken  as  a 
fair  average  for  fully-matured  Devon  steers,  although  800  pounds  is  not 
unfrequently  reached  by  choice  beasts.  Cows,  when  fat,  will  average 
800  pounds  at  six  to  seven  years.  Bulls  often  weigh,  when  very  fat, 
a  ton  (live  weight).  A  selected  dairy  of  cows  will  average  from  500  to 
600  gallons  of  milk  a  year,  many  giving  up  to  700  gallons,  and  300 
pounds  of  butter.  These  are  exceptional  cases.  A  prevailing  custom 
in  Devonshire  is  to  let  cows  to  dairymen  for  the  season,  £13  each  being 
about  the  average  paid. 

Live  weight:  P°und8' 

Four-year  old  ox,  at  Smithfield  show,   December,  1853  (offal,  8  pounds  to 
the  score)  .......  ;  ............................  ......  .  ____  *mmfm  ........  I,QUG 

Weight  of  heifer,  at  Smithiield  show,  December,  1883  ..  I'cOO 


Annual  average  ..........................  ,.  3500 

To  pound  of  butter  .....................................................        »& 

To  pound  of  cheese  .............  ..  .......  9 

Climate.  —  Mean  temperature,  50°. 

AU  °ld  breed8  e8tabli8hed  ^  selections  from  existing  breed  of  the 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  193 

POLLED  ABERDEEN  AND  ANGUS  BREED. 

This  breed  has  long  ranked  amongst  the  most  valuable  converters  of 
vegetable  into  animal  food,  and  few  can  excel  them  for  the  return  when 
pitted  against  other  breeds,  acre  for  acre.  The  other  Scotch  breeds  are 
on  a  par  as  to  age  at  maturity,  but  the  Aberdeen  may  have  a  little  ad- 
vantage in  weight.  For  loDg  ancestral  purity  of  blood  (if  it  be  of  impor- 
tance) it  must  yield  that  honor  to  the  Galloway  and  West  Highlander. 
In  some  cases  they  have  equaled  the  ponderous  Short-horn  in  weight. 
They  do  not  possess  the  regular  uniformity  of  type  and  character  of  the 
Galloway,  but  no  good  end  can  be  served  for  practical  purposes  by  de- 
scribing the  origin  of  the  breeds.  Authorities  agree  that  our  exist- 
ing Follies  are  descended  from  horned  cattle,  and  when  the  departure 
from  the  ancient  order  of  things  took  place  can  only  be  conjectured. 
These  Polled  varieties  are  grouped  in  three  defined  breeds,  viz,  Norfolk, 
Galloway,  and  Aberdeen.  The  latter  formerly  embraced  a  variety  of 
colors,  but  since  the  systematic  improvement  has  set  in,  all  shades  of 
color,  except  black,  are  at  a  discount,  and  it  is  now  black  and  nothing 
else.  They  are  now  being  modeled  to  the  breeder's  fancy  and  require- 
ments. The  setting  on  of  the  tail  is  a  characteristic  in  the  oldest ;  the 
removal  of  this  defect  will  be  a  valuable  achievement  when  accom- 
plished. The  superiority  of  the  Follies  and  Highlanders  over  most  other 
breeds  consists  in  the  excellent  quality  of  their  beef  and  the  high  per- 
centage of  dead  to  live  weight.  As  a  rule  the  meat  is  well  marbled, 
often  a  greater  proportion  of  compact,  finely -grained  flesh,  with  less 
coarse  fat  than  many  other  breeds.  Some  people  will  place  the  Devons 
before  them.  I  consider  it  in  no  way  inferior.  Both  these  breeds  with 
skillful  care  have  greater  things  to  look  forward  to. 

Amongst  those  who  are  not  thoroughly  conversant  with  the  Aberdeens 
an  idea  exists  that  they  are  slow  feeders  as  well  as  being  slow  at  arriving 
at  maturity.  There  is  little  doubt  that  such  was  the  case.  Now,  how- 
ever, it  has  been  so  greatly  improved  in  that  respect  that  it  matures  al- 
most as  soon  as  some  of  the  leading  breeds,  and  if  well  fed  from  birth  the 
best  specimens  become  ripe  at  the  age  of  from  twenty-eight  to  thirty 
months.  This  breed  is  remarkable  for  retaining  loveliness  of  form  during 
the  fattening  process,  and  in  cases  of  excessive  feeding  they  rarely  be- 
come patchy,  or  disproportioned.  Since  the  rage  for  young  beef  became  so 
strong,  many  have  been  fed  for  the  butchers  at  thirty  months  old,  where 
they  have  realized  from  £25  to  £35.  Many  fully-matured  bullocks  will 
fetch  at  the  London  Christmas  market  £40  to  £48  each.  The  breed 
cannot  now  be  distinguished  for  its  milking  properties ;  formerly  it  was 
held  in  high  estimation  for  dairy  purposes.  The  main  aim  of  the  im- 
provers has  been  the  development  of  its  beef-producing  qualities  to  the 
deterioration  of  the  flow  of  milk ;  and  now  they  are  actually  deficient 
in  this  respect,  but  with  a  little  attention  their  ancient  reputation  can 
be  restored.  A  few  families  are  excellent  milkers  ;  these  are  becoming 
more  highly  esteemed  than  they  were  a  few  years  ago.  This  breed,  as 
well  as  the'Galloway,  are  finding  favor  with  English  breeders,  and  many 
herds  are  already  formed  in  England,  also  in  Ireland.  In  Scotland  itself 
this  breed  is  extending  its  territory.  More  than  a  hundred  herds  are 
now  established  there.  Of  the  Polled  Herd-Book,  published  in  1862, 
six  volumes  have  been  issued,  and  in  the  last  the  names  of  119  breeders 
appear.  There  have  now  been  registered  1,930  bulls,  5,054  cows  and 
heifers.  The  herd-book  is  now  conducted  by  a  society  formed  in  1869, 
on  similar  principles  to  the  Shorthorn  Herd-Book.  One  of  our  great  im- 
provers of  the  breed  was  Mr.  Hugh  Watson,  followed  by  Mr.  McCombie, 
H.  Ex.  51-— 13 


194  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

Tillifour,  whoso  remarkable  show-yard  achievements,  both  in  fat  and 
breeding1  stock,  have  boon  instrumental  in  bringing  their  true  merits 
before  the  public.  The  deservedly  high  reputation  the  Aberdeens  have 
gained  is  mainly  due  to  the  indefatigable  exertions  in  the  promotion  of  the 
breed  by  that  popular  breeder,  whose  judgment  is  entitled  to  the  highest 
respect.  In  Mr.  McCom bio's  early  days  he  laid  a  firm  foundation,  to 
which  the  most  noted  animals  of  the  present  day  are  closely  allied.  He 
purchased  the  mother  of  the  Prides  for  the  sum  of  £12  105.  in  1844,  and 
at  the  dispersion  of  his  herd,  in  1880  10  Prides  averaged  each  over  £80 
10s.  One  Pride,  the  fifth  in  descent  from  the  £12  Ws.  animal,  realized 
the  handsome  sum  of  £283  10s.  At  the  present  day  they  are  most  val- 
uable and  popular;  their  only  real  rivals  are  the  Ericas,  of  Ballindalloch. 
McCombie's  show- yard  honors  are  unparalleled  in  farm-stock  history. 
I  firmly  believe  there  is  sufficient  scope  for  judicious  selections  to  be 
made  from  the  Galloway  ranks  to  obtain  as  great  results  as  those 
achieved  by  those  popular  improvers  of  the  Aberdeens.  The  Galloways 
are  by  no  means  pushed  to  the  extent  of  substance  and  refinement  to 
which  they  are  capable  of  developing.  Mr.  McCornbie's  success  in  build- 
ing the  family  of  the  Prides  was  in  a  very  great  measure  due  to  his 
great  judgment  and  care  in  the  selection  of  bulls.  The  difference  be- 
tween the  two  breeds  is,  as  might  be  expected,  from  different  circum- 
stances. The  Galloway  has  a  thicker  skin,  a  stronger  and  better  coat 
of  hair,  and  more  shaggy  appearance  than  the  Aberdeen,  Admirers  of 
each  breed  claim  superiority,  and  on  this  point  considerable  difference 
of  opinion  exists. 

The  Aberdeen  answers  admirably  to  the  indulgence  it  receives,  and 
the  Galloways  do  well  on  more  humble  fare;  meritorious  animals  of 
both  breeds  have  appeared  in  the  show  ring,  and,  from  a  butcher's  point 
of  view,  neither  breed  has  to  yield  to  any  other. 

Live  weight:  Pounds. 

Four-year-old  ox,  at  Smithfield  show,  December,  1883  (offal  8,  pounds  to 

the  score)  2,375 

Cow  or  heifer  (offal,  8  pounds  to  the  score) * 1,883 

Dead  weight : 

Fully  matured  ox  (average)  ordinarily  fed  for  market 720 

Milk: 

Annual  average : 3,500 

,    To  pound  of  butter 24 

To  pound  of  cheese..., 10 

Soil. — Clay,  loam,  and  peat. 
Climate.—  Mean  temperature.  47°  8'. 
Color.— All  black. 

GALLOWAYS. 

Galloways  are  by  nature  good  milkers,  but  since  the  rage  for  young 
Scotch  beef  has  sprung  up  in  the  London  markets,  the  dairy  prop- 
erties have  become  a  secondary  consideration,  and  the  pole-axe  has 
taken  precedence  of  the  dairy.  As  beef  producers  they  rank  among 
the  first  quotation.  At  the  international  show  held  at  Poissy  in  1875, 
the  Scotch  Pollies  were  awarded  the  highest  honor  for  the  best  live  beef 
against  all  breeds,  which  honors  were  substantiated  when  dressed. 
This  breed  has  been  distinguished  for  hardiness  and  feeding  properties 
for  many  generations.  Their  fine  qualities  are  no  longer  hid  under  a 
bushel.  Their  reputation  has  spread  far  and  wide,  and  a  great  and  in- 
creasing demand  has  sprung  up,  both  for  home  market  and  export.  Be- 
ing hornless  and  very  docile  they  are  admirably  adapted  for  yard  feed- 
ing, railway  and  ship  transit. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  195 

They  are  reared  upon  thin,  rocky,  inferior  land,  in  a  most  severe  cli- 
mate, especially  in  winter  and  spring,  and  their  ready  response  to  liberal 
treatment  commends  them  to  all  who  are  engaged  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits. Notwithstanding  their  climate,  the  ordinary  breeder  affords  no 
shelter  beyond  about  three  of  the  severe  months,  but  nature  has  provided 
them  with  a  thick,  black  waterproof  of  long,  thick-set,  silky  hair,  and 
strong  mellow  hides  to  protect  the  model  carcass,  and  to  fit  them  for  the 
hardships  they  may  have  to  endure  in  their  native  homes,  while  their 
more  favored  rivals,  the  Aberdeens,  are  often  only  exposed  for  a  corres- 
ponding period  in  the  summer.  This  practice  has  been  established 
many  years  and  is  found  to  succeed  well  in  Aberdeenshire,  and  all  ad- 
joining counties  where  artificial  food  can  be  abundantly  produced.  The 
winter  food  consists  chiefly  of  straw  and  turnips  on  farms  where  they 
can  be  profitably  produced. 

It  is  fully  believed  that  the  Galloway  can  gain  a  year  in  maturity, 
give  a  third  more  milk,  and  a  proportionate  increase  in  beef  under  more 
favorable  circumstances.  The  price  at  which  selected  animals  can  be 
purchased :  Heifers,  at  two  and  three  years  old,  from  £25  to  £35.  Much 
larger  prices  are  realized  in  many  cases  where  fashion  overrules  judg- 
ment. By  careful  cultivation  the  general  milking  properties  can  be 
restored,  and  I  have  the  authority  of  the  principal  of  a  large  butter  fac- 
tory to  state  that  the  Galloway  »p rod uces  the  richest  milk  of  any  other 
breed  that  contributes  to  the  dairy,  and  is  very  regular  in  quantity 
which  supports  the  remark  that  their  robust  constitution  defies  all  ordi- 
nary disease ;  therefore  few  drawbacks  are  experienced. 

The  beef  is  spoken  of  in  the  sixteenth  century  as  being  right  delicious 
and  tender,  which  properties  it  retains  in  a  high  degree  to  the  present 
day.  The  English  graziers  found  out  their  good  feeding  properties  soon 
after  the  union  of  the  two  crowns,  and  for  upwards  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years  the  trade  has  been  extensive  and  is  now  brisker  than  ever. 

The  once-prevailing  practice  of  spaying  the  heifers  has  been  discon- 
tinued, and  the  heifers  are  now  retained  for  breeding  purposes  to  meet 
the  growing  demand,  and  give  a  more  favorable  opportunity  of  improv- 
ing the  breed  by  selection. 

The  Galloway  cattle  possess  all  the  character  and  resemblance  which 
constitutes  a  breed,  yet  they  vary  much  in  size  and  form  according  to 
the  treatment  they  receive  and  the  fertility  of  their  ranges.  Not  sup- 
plying young  growing  stock  with  sufficient  nutritious  food,  when  bone 
and  muscle  are  forming,  is  an  erroneous  practice,  which  many  breeders 
have  followed,  when  at  the  same  time  convinced  of  their  error.  These 
animals  answer  admirably  to  liberal  treatment,  and  therefore  must  be 
adapted  for  countries  where  food  is  plentiful.  I  have  always  received 
highly  satisfactory  accounts  of  the  progress  made  by  them  in  foreign 
countries. 

At  the  Smithfield  show  (London),  the  Scotch  Follies  are  all  classed 
together  as  one  breed.  The  weights  under  the  head  of  Aberdeens  is  a 
little  more  than  the  Galloway. 

Pounds. 

Average  dead  weight  of  a  matured  ox  ordinarily  fed  for  market 700 

Milk:  . 

Annual  average  weight --••  > '  o> 

To  1  pound  of  butter ^~ 

To  1  pound  of  cheese • y 

Soil. — Loam,  clay  and  sandy. 

Climate.—  Mean  temperature  49°.2. 

Color.— All  black.     One  of  the  oldest  British  breeds. 


196  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

NORFOLK  POLLS. 

They  are  red  in  color  and  have  figured  at  the  Koyal  Agricultural 
Society's  meetings  for  many  years,  and  have  gained  many  prizes  in  the 
class  "  for  other  established  breeds,"  and  were  awarded  the  dignity  of 
special  prize  at  the  royal  show  held  at  Battersea  in  1862.  Since  then 
they  have  been  gaining  approbation,  giving  evidence,  as  they  do,  of  good 
milking  properties,  as  well  as  size  and  symmetry,  and  carrying  a  good 
proportion  of  lean  meat  to  the  fat.  Considerable  attention  has  been 
paid  to  the  improvement  of  this  breed,  and  it  is  becoming  more  noted 
for  dairy, productions.  The  soil,  climate,  and  treatment  are  favorable 
to  their  cultivation  and  development  of  all  their  essential  properties. 
They  are  the  general  dairy  breed  of  their  county,  which  is  more  a  grain 
and  grazing  district  than  dairy. 

The  soil  is  alluvial,  loam  and  sand,  fertile,  with  a  mild  climate.  They 
are  an  old  breed,  with  short  legs  and  thick  bodies,  supposed  to  be  de- 
scended from  the  Galloway,  with  native  admixture. 

Live  weight :  Pounds. 

Four-year  old  ox  at  Smithfield  show,  December,  1883  (offal,  8  pounds  to 
tlie  score) 2,012 

Cow  or  heifer 1,984 

Dead  weight : 

Ox  fed  in  the  ordinary  way ! 700 

Cow  or  heifer  fed  in  the  ordinary  way 640 

Color. — All  red. 

Climate.—  Mean  temperature,  49°. 5. 

WEST     HIGHLANDER. 

This  wild  and  fierce  looking  mountain  ranger,  with  its  long,  shaggy 
hair  and  gracefully  set  long  horns,  is  a  general  favorite  with  every  gra- 
zier in  the  Kingdom,  of  which  it  may  be  said  "it  never  lost  a  friend  or 
made  an  enemy."  The  great  demand  and  keen  competition  for  these 
really  hardy  and  picturesque  animals  for  grazing  in  all  parts  of  Eng- 
land leaves  a  very  small  margin  for  profit.  They  are  special  favorites 
with  many  noblemen,  and  are  selected  for  the  profitable  adornment  of 
their  parks.  Many  are  slaughtered  for  the  use  of  the  castle  ovmausion, 
the  beef  being  of  the  choicest  quality,  and  they  harmonize  well  with  the 
deer,  and  are  the  ornament  of  the  parks  through  all  seasons,  as  house 
protection  is  unknown  to  them  unless  on  special  occasions,  where  show- 
yard  honors  rule  the  ambition.  I  have  seen  them  in  their  native  homes 
and  again  seen  the  same  animals  shown  in  our  southern  markets  before 
the  railways  were  taken  advantage  of,  fresh  and  vigorous  after  a  drive 
of  over  600  miles.  Their  inexhaustible  staying  powers  are  specially  de- 
sirable to  beef  producers  in  distant  countries  where  railway  accommo- 
dation is  not  available.  They  mature  at  four  years  old ;  they  are  quick 
graziers,  and  produce  the  highest  quality  of  beef.  They  aVerage  be- 
tween 480  pounds  and  600  pounds  dead  weight,  according  to  keep,  &c., 
but  can  be  brought  to  much  greater  weight  by  artificial  food  and  treat- 
ment. They  have  been  bred  in  vast  numbers  in  the  bleak  and  romantic 
isles  and  highlands  of  Western  Scotland  from  time  immemorial  and  still 
retain  their  high  reputation  to  the  fullest  extent  for  all  the  above  prop- 
erties. The  grazier  may  not  realize  a  very  great  profit  for  the  outlay, 
as  the  never-failing  demand  keeps  up  the  price,  but  profit  is  very  cer- 
tain as  there  is  always  a  corresponding  demand  when  fat,  and  they  re- 
quire very  little  attention,  being  grass  fed ;  and  they  are  free  from  ail- 
ments. In  their  mountain  homes  they  are  of  a  wild  nature,  but  soon 


THE    UNITED   KINGDOM.  197 

yield  to  domestication,  when  they  become  very  docile  on  receiving  kind 
treatment.  They  give  rich  milk  and  a  fair  quantity,  but  from  their  high 
and  profitable  feeding  qualities  they  are  not  used  in  regular  dairies,  but 
supply  home  consumption  and  cottagers  (cotters).  When  prepared  for 
our  fat  shows  they  scale  great  weights.  Their  long  coats  of  hair,  for- 
midable horns,  and  general  wild  appearance,  render  them  very  attrac- 
tive objects  and  add  great  interest  to  the  exhibition.  These/  animals 
cross  well  with  the  Shorthorn  bull  as  well  as  the  Galloway.  The  pro- 
duce, invariably  surpassing  the  dam  in  weight,  are  well  formed  and 
often  combine  in  a  greater  degree  the  milking  and  feeding  properties. 
Argyleshire  is  the  stronghold  of  Scots.  The  breed  is  not,  however,  con- 
fined to  that  county,  but  extends  to  the  rugged  heathery  hills  surround- 
ing, where  scarcely  any  other  kinds  of  cattle  can  exist/ 

Live  weight :  Pon,:dg. 

Fully  matured  ox,  at  Smithfielcl  show,  December,  18S3  (offal,  loss  than  8 
pounds  to  the  score) g  090 

Cow  or  heifer  at  Smithfield  show,  December,  1883 ".",  l'  480 

Dead  weight : 

Fully  matured  (average)  steer  when  fed  for  market  on  grass GOO 

Heifers  when  fed  for  market  on  grass 500 

Annual  average ....2,500-3,000 

To  1  pound  of  butter 22 

To  1  pound  of  cheese "9 

Soil. — Light  loam,  clay,  and  granite. 
Climate. — Mean  temperature,  48°  4'. 
Color.— Red,  black,  and  dun. 

THE   SUSSEX. 

The  Sussex  are  now  ranking  among  the  improved  breeds,' and  possess 
all  the  essential  character  of  the  Devons,  but  resemble  more  the  South 
than  the  North  Devons,  being  larger  in  size  and  coarser  in  form.  The 
breed  may  not  have  been  so  strictly  kept  from  foreign  admixture  of 
blood,  yet  it  exhibits  as  great  a  uniformity  of  character  as  any  other 
breed.  They  exhibit  a  slightly  nervous  temperament,  and  are  not  very 
heavy  milkers,  but  are  good  grazers,  and,  when  fully  matured,  attain 
considerable  weight.  They  require  four  years  before  they  reach  ful  1  ma- 
turity. This  breed  has  its  warm  admirers  as  well  as  prejudiced  oppo- 
nents; it  may  not  have  obtained  that  public  favor  to  cause  its  intro- 
duction into  other  parts  of  the  country.  This  is  not  from  any  inferiority 
of  the  breed,  but  because  the  same  attention  has  not  been  employed 
in  calling  forth  the  properties  most  generally  valued  in  any  breed  of 
cattle.  It  is  not  until  comparatively  a  recent  date  that  the  promoters 
of  this  breed  have  set  to  work  in  good  earnest  to  remove  defects  and 
supply  symmetry,  quality,  and  early  maturity.  Those  efforts  have  been 
wonderfully  successful.  The  show  of  reds  at  the  royal  agricultural 
meeting,  held  in  York,  in  July  last,  far  surpassed  any  former  show  for 
quality,  refined  improvement,  and  development  of  important  parts. 
Sussex  being  chiefly  arable  land,  the  work  was  formerly  done  both  by 
bullocks  and  heifers,  for  which  work  they  are  admirably  adapted,  com- 
bining as  they- do  weight  of  body  with  muscular  activity.  They  are 
still  used  in  the  stiff  soils  of  the  weald.  From  four  to  eight  are  worked 
together,  commencing  at  three  years  and  worked,  until  five  or  six,  when 
they  are  fattened  for  the  butcher.  The  distinctive  color  is  red.  but  of  a 
less  florid  shade  than  the  North  Devon.  They  have  long,  but  not  coarse 
horns :  the  hair  and  handling  is  not  equal  to  that  of  the  Devon,  but 


198  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

they  feed  to  greater  weights  at  equal  ages.  They  are  tolerably  good 
milkers,  but  are  not  eagerly  sought  after  for  regular  dairies.  Their 
general  appearance  indicates  that  if  means  were  used  to  improve  them 
in  the  degree  to  which  they  are  susceptible,  and  by  judicious  attention 
to  the  selection  of  parents  to  improve  the  progeny,  they  are  capable  of 
developing  into  good  dairy  and  beef  producers  and  become  valuable 
for  exportation  as  the  foundation  for  a  breed  that  is  likely  to  be  molded 
to  the  taste  and  requirements  of  future  breeders  and  to  soil  and  climate. 

Live  u-eigU :  Pounds. 

Of  four-year  old  ox  at  Smithfield,  1883  (offal  over  8  pounds  to  the  score).  2, 241 

Weight  of  heifer  (Smithfield,  1883).. 1,890 

"Weight  of  cow,  any  age 2,245 

Dead  weight : 

Fully  matured  ox,  ordinary,  fed  for  market 840 

Heifer,  fed  for  market.... 720 

Cow,  fed  for  market 800 

Milk : 

Annual  average 4, 000 

To  1  pound  of  butter 

To  1  pound  of  cheese 

Soil. — Clay,  loam,  sandy. 
•  Cliviate. — Mean  temperature  50°. 
Color.— All  *fed. 

WELSH   CATTLE   OR,  RUNTS. 

The  great  improvements  that  have  been  made  in  this  breed  has 
brought  it  into  prominent  notice  by  graziers.  This  breed  was  a  me- 
dium-sized mountain  beast,  but  has  now  pushed  to  the  front,  and  at  the 
great  Smithfield  show  held  in  London  has  scaled  the  heaviest  weight  of 
any  bullock  in  the  hall.  The  breed  possess  many  of  the  West  High- 
landers properties,  but  lacks  the  hair  and  the  picturesquely  fierce  ap- 
pearance of  those  shaggy  inhabit ers  of  the  Scotch  hills.  The  Welsh 
give  rich  milk,  and  are  extending  their  limits,  but  they  are  not  likely 
to  supersede  the  fine  existing  breeds  or  modify  the  character  of  many 
by  admixture.  They  would  answer  well  for  export  where  hardihood  is 
very  essential  and  refinement  not  of  importance.  They  are  natives  of 
the  hilly  country,  where  their  food  is  the  rough  herbage  of  the  mountain, 
where  the  cattle  are  in  a  corresponding  degree  small,  but  coarse  and 
robust,  and  somewhat  slow  at  arriving  at  maturity. 

In  the  vale,  where  better  natural  and  artificial  food  is  plentiful,  they 
make  a  greater  size  and  answer  well  to  treatment.  It  may  have  been 
a  sufficient  length  of  time  distinct  and  uniform  to  constitute  a  well- 
defined  breed,  and  a  good  butcher  beast,  but  wanting  in  style  and 
grandeur. 

Live  weight :  Pounds. 

Of  four-year  old  ox  at  Smithfield  December,  1883 2, 498 

Cow  or  heifer  (offal  9  pounds  to  the  score) 2,214 

Dead  weight : 

Average  of  fully  matured  ox,  ordinary  feeding 800 

Jc  * 

Annual  average _ 3,000 

To  1  pound  butter 24 

To  1  pound  of  cheese 4 10 

Soil— Slaty  clay. 

Climate.—  Mean  temperature,  49°.5. 

Color. — All  black,  with  strong  horns. 

An  old  breed.     The  improvement  of  modern  date. 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  199 

THE  LONG HORN. 

The  Longhorn  a  century  ago  held  an  eminent  position  among  our 
British  breeds  of  cattle  in  ninny,  of  our  northern  English  counties,  and 
was  liberally  distributed  over  Erin's  green  isle.  They  have  long  been 
on  the  wane,  and  their  reputation,  which  had  given  Bakewell,  the  orig- 
inator of  the  breed,  years  of  anxious  study,  has  passed  away  more  rapidly 
than  acquired ;  given  way  to  animals  possessing  earlier  maturity,  milk- 
ing and  grazing  properties  in  a  greater  degree  than  the  once  popular 
Long-horn. 

Some  spirited  efforts  have  been  made  for  years  past  by  enterprising 
men  and  ardent  admirers  of  this  once-famed  breed  to  restore  them  to 
public  notice  and  .patronage,  and  the  result  is  that  some  splendid  indi- 
vidual specimens  are  brought  forward  at  our  great  meetings.  The  Koyal 
Agricultural  Society  of  England  and  Christmas  shows  encourage  the 
breed  by  offering  prizes  for  them,  and  they  certainly  attract  more  than 
an  average  share  of  attention  from  young  farmers  and  sight-seers.  The 
ponderous  horns  and  peculiar  and  uncommon  color,  white  streak  down 
the  back,  a  broader  one  on  the  belly,  with  dingy  gray  or  mixed  brown  and 
white  center  pieces,  and  clothed  with  water-dog  hair,  render  them  very 
attractive.  They  give  very  rich  milk,  and  formerly  were  good  dairy 
cows.  They  attain  considerable  weight  when  fully  matured,  which 
takes  at  least  four  years.  The  beef  is  very  firm  and  good,  but  not  evenly 
distributed,  and  is- wrapped  in  a  thick  valuable  hide.  They  possess  a 
strong,  hardy  constitution,  and  although  confined  in  narrow  limits,  it  is 
to  be  hoped  those  energetic  patrons  of  the  old  breed  may  be  successful 
in  their  efforts  to  reinstate  them  in  all  their  former  glories,  with  such 
modifications  and  improvements  as  will  render  it  worthy  of  public  notice 
and  more  extensive  patronage. 

Many  of  Mr.  BakewelPs  followers  succeeded  well -with  the  breed  by  con- 
tinually hiring  bulls  from  Mr.  Bakewell.  One  of  the  earliest  and  most 
distinguished  adherents  was  Mr.  Fowler,  near  Oxford,  whose  herd  was 
sold  off  in  the  year  1791,  when  the  following  prices  were  realized,  viz : 
Bull,  five  years  old,  was  sold  for  £215  ;  bull,  two  years  old,  for  £220.10; 
bull,  one  year  old,  £210 ;  bull,  aged,  for  £215.  Four  cows  realized 
£215,  £273,  £120,  and  £195,  respectively. 

Pounds 

Average  dead  weight  of  steer,  four  years  old 800 

Average  dead  weight  of  heifer,  four  years  old 720 

Average  dead  weight  of  cow,  aged 800 

Milk : 

Annual  yield 3,000 

To  pound  of  butter *2 

To  pound  of  cheese -. 9 

Soil. — Deep  loam  on  limestone. 
Climate. — Mean  temperature,  49°.6. 

THE  AYRSHIRE. 

The  Ayrshire  ranks  amongst  the  best  cattle  for  dairy  purposes.  It 
has  few  equals,  but  it  is  not  held  in  high  estimation  as  a  beef  beast,  be- 
ing small  and  not  that  kindly  animal  that  graziers  like  to  meet  with  ; 
still  they  are  good  feeders  when  dry.  They  have  an  extensive  circle  of 
admirers  in  their  own  native  home  and  surrounding  counties.  They  are 
a  hardy  race,  and  are  bred  exclusively  for  dairy  uses.  Their  Ayrshire 
home  on  the  Clyde  and  near  the  Irish  sea  consists  of  moorland,  hills, 
and  in  some  parts  undulating  surface  of  common  clay ;  the  hills  are 


200  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FAKMING., 

light,  rocky,  with  poor  herbage.  The  narrow  valleys  have  sweeter  food. 
Towards  the  sea  there  are  great  belts  of  barren  sand.  The  climate  is 
moist  and  the  district  greatly  exposed  to  continued  winds  and  humid 
vapors  from  the  Atlantic.  There  are  a  few  tracts  of  useful  land,  but 
throughout  the  fertility  is  very  moderate.  The  Ayrshires  at  one  time 
were  used  in  our  London  dairies,  but  have  been  relinquished  in  favor  of 
the  Yorkshire  or  Tees  water  Shorthorn.  They  did  not  come  to  the 
weight  and  condition  after  failing  to  be  profitable  for  milk,  and,  there- 
fore, are  supplanted  by  animals  better  adapted  to  the  system  of  milking 
and  feeding  simultaneously.  Although  the  Ayrshires  are  very  valuable 
dairy  stock  in  their  native  homes,  and  it  is  not  satisfactorily  settled  as  to 
whether  they  do  not  pay  best  on  medium  and  poor  herbage,  in  some 
cases  it  has  been  found  that  when  transported  to  genial  soil  and  climate 
they  begin  to  lay  on  flesh  and  do  not  increase  in  milk  in  a  corresponding 
degree.  Although  of  long  standing,  it  was  late  in  being  prominently 
brought  before  the  public  as  a  defined  breed,  and  the  high  qualities  pos- 
sessed thereby  are  due  to  the  admixture  of  Teeswater  and  Jersey 
blood  which  has  been  introduced  to  their  country.  The  great  si milarity 
existing  between  the  Jersey  breed  and  the  Ayrshire  is  in  the  color  of 
skin,  horns,  and  dairy  properties.  The  general  resemblance  of  form  is 
so  great  that  a  Jersey  cow  might  easily  be  mistaken  for  an  Ayrshire. 
The  bull  calves  of  this  breed  are  mostly  sold  for  veal.  No  breed  receives 
more  attention  than  this  does  by  its  admirers  to  keep  intact  and  type 
all  its  properties.  These  animals  carry  the  neatest  bag  and  best  formed 
teats  of  any  breed.  They  do  not  carry  a  brilliant  color,  being  a  dingy 
red  and  white.  When  dry  they  feed  well.  Their  greatest  drawback  is 
want  of  substance  for  general  purposes,  but  there  is  no  just  reason  why 
this  breed  cannot  be  greatly  improved  and  all  defects  removed. 

Pounds. 

Dead  weight  of  matured  heifer  or  cow  fed  in  the  ordinary  way  for  market. . 
Milk:  Annual  average  weight 6,000 

To  1  pound  of  butter 

To  1  pound  of  cheese 

Soil. — Loam,  clay  and  sand. 
Climate. — Mean  temperature,  48°. 8. 
Color. — Dingy  red  and  white. 
An  old  established  dairy  breed  of  Teeswater  and  Jersey  mixture. 

THE  JERSEY. 

The  Jersey  is  distinguished  as  producing  rich  milk,  fine  colored  and 
delicate  flavored  butter,  for  which  luxury  they  are  often  kept  as  lady- 
pets  in  private  families,  but  are  only  partially  used  in  regular  dairies 
to  give  a  little  coloring  to  the  dairy  products.  They  are  to  be  found 
throughout  the  United  Kingdom  for  the  same  purpose.  Color  pale  red 
and  white,  but  the  smoke  or  silver-gray  color  is  preferred ;  skin  of 
orange-yellow,  which  is  an  indication  of  rich  milk  ;  small  sized  and  of 
delicate  constitution.  They  are  not  prepossessing  in  form,  and  are  awk- 
ward of  gait,  but  very  docile.  The  surplus  bull  calves  are  fed  for  veal  5 
the  heifers  are  kept  for  the  dairy  and  breeding  purposes.  Therefore,  lit- 
tle can  be  said  for  the  beef.  Any  improvement  that  may  arise  from  cross- 
ing will  be  due  to  the  new  infusion.  It  would  take  many  generations 
of  careful  culture  to  permanently  unite  and  establish  those  essential 
properties  in  such  a  degree  as  to  commend  them  to  the  public  as  profit- 
able beef  and  butter  machines.  They  are  more  fitted  for  amateur  farm- 
ers and  opulent  families,  than  for  ordinary  dairy  purposes,  as  when  they 
have  done  milking  there  is  little  to  carry  to  the  reserve  fund.  The 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  201 

prices  vary  more  from  fancy  than  intrinsic  value,  ranging  from  £20  to 
£30  for  good  animals,  bufc  three  times  that  amount  has  been  paid  for 
them  when  sold  at  auction,  and  over  £100  frequently  for  very  choice 
specimens.  They  will  no  doubt  answer  all  reasonable  requirements  if 
exported  to  genial  soils  and  climates. 

They  are  regular  breeders  and  will  continue  to  be  so  to  a  good  old 
age,  but  as  a  natural  consequence  will  fail  to  retain  the  quantity  and 
quality  of  milk  as  if  young  and  in  full  vigor. 

Annual  average  of  milk,  4,880  pounds ;  17  to  20  pounds  of  milk  to  1 
pound  of  butter ;  quantity  of  milk  to  cheese,  not  known  5  average  live 
weight  at  four  years  old,  896  pounds. 

R^SUMti— ANALYTICAL   COMPARISONS. 

Meat  producers. — As  to  the  profitable  size  of  an  animal,  there  is  a 
great  difference  of  opinion  amongst  men  whose  judgment  and  experience 
entitle  them  to  great  respect.  Every  man  has  his  favorite  breed  and 
this  in  their  eyes  is  the  only  breed  worthy  of  cultivation.  But  we  must 
bear  the  great  fact  in  mind  that  the  profit  of  breeder  and  feeder  de- 
pends not  so  much  upon  what  the  animals  make  as  what  it  costs  mak- 
ing. The  Hereford  not  infrequently  pays  the  grazier  better  than  the 
Shorthorn,  but  the  value  of  a  breed  is  not  to  bo  determined  by  the  profit 
it  yields  between  buying  and  selling,  but  by  that  which  it  yields  to  the 
breeder  and  feeder  conjointly  from  its  birth  to  maturity.'  The  great 
objections  raised  against  the  Devons  is  said  to  be  their  diminutive  size. 
Now,  there  are  many  specimens  of  the  Devon  breed  that  have  scaled 
great  weights.  Mr.  Hancock,  of  Hales,  had  a  bullock  in  1873  whose  live 
weight  was  nearly  2,788  pounds,  and  which  yielded  1,780  pounds  of 
beef.  This  animal  was  five  years  old  and  had  been  worked  on  the  farm. 
A  well-known  breeder,  Mr.  Hatway,  had  an  animal  of  the  Devon  breed 
which  weighed  1,700  pounds  dead  weight.  There  are  many  other  indi- 
vidual animals  which  have  reached  extraordinary  weight.  Mr.  Samuel 
Kinder's  champion  ox  weighed  alive  2,128  pounds,  and  gave  a  carcass 
of  beef  weighing  1,500  pounds.  At  the  Smithfield  Club  show,  in  1875, 
Mr.  Eichard  Warner's  cow  weighed  alive  2,03G  pounds.  These  weights 
leave  great  hopes  of  further  development  in  size  of  the  general  breed. 
Although  these  are  extreme  cases,  of  which  many  more  can  be  referred 
to,  they  may  suffice  to  hold  out  great  encouragement  to  a  beginner 
to  make  selections  possessing  qualities  and  capabilities  calculated  to 
remove  the  North  Devons  from  the  stigma  of  pigmy  animals.  Their 
dairy  properties  may  not  rank  with  the  first,  but  they  possess  that  tend- 
ency to  dairy  productions  that  give  every  encouragement  for  great  im- 
provement in  that  important  branch  by  judicious  selections  and  careful 
treatment. 

The  very  best  beef-producing  animal  in  existence  is  the  cross  between 
the  Scotch  Follies  and  the  pure  bred  Shorthorn  bull.  This  system  of 
crossing  is  extensively  practiced  in  Scotland.  Ninety  per  cent,  of 
the  Aberdeenshire  beef,  so  highly  prized  in  the  London  market,  is  a 
cross  between  these  two  breeds.  At  the  Smithfield  Club  show  in  Lon- 
don in  1880  the  average  increase  in  weight  of  six  steers  of  Polled 
breed  under  three  years  of  age  was  1.78  pounds,  and  the  corresponding 
class  of  Shorthorns  show  1.79  pounds.  The  black  Follies  will  frequently 
realize  at  three  years  in  the  London  Christmas  fat-market  from  £25  to 
£40,  and  some  choice  specimens  higher  sums  If  the  breed  were  dis- 
tinguished for  milking  in  the  same  degree,  it  would  be  one  of  the  most 


202 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


valuable  of  our  British  breeds.  The  rise  in  this  breed  has  within  the 
past  few  years  been  remarkable.  Good  average  cows  will  bring  from 
£30  to  £45,  while  better-bred  farniles  and  more  popular  will  realize  from 
£50  to  £100  on  an  average ;  some  fashionable  tribes  ranging  from  £120 
to  £270.  The  average  of  Mr.  Adamson's  sale  in  1881  was  as  follows: 
Fifteen  cows  realized  over  £47  each ;  10  heifers  averaged  £47  ;  9  calves 
over  £20  each ;  2  bulls  averaged  £118.  The  36  animals  averaged  £56 
11s.  each. 

London  dairy  tests.— The  result  of  the  London  dairy  scientific  tests 
may  show  the  qualifications  of  individual  specimens,  but.  I  do  not  think 
that  a  reliable  annual  average,  either  of  weight  of  milk,  proportion  of 
milk  to  butter,  and  milk  to  cheese,  characteristic  of  any  breed  is  recorded. 
In  fact  I  do  not  think  such  a  statement  possible  to  be  made,  as  good 
soil,  climate,  and  other  circumstances  make  great  variations,  even  with 
the  same  animals.  However  carefully  an  experiment  in  s,uch  cases  is 
conducted  it  can  only  apply  individually,  and  is  open  to  criticism  and 
objections,  and  is  not  calculated  to  satisfactorily  solve  the  question  upon 
reliable  information.  The  nearest  approximation  to  the  requirements 
will  be  gathered  from  general  milking  properties,  where  minute  details 
which  cannot  have  a  general  application  must  be  taken  into  considera- 
tion. 

In  a  very  extensive  milking  dairy  in  Yorkshire,  where  every  depart- 
ment is  conducted  on  the  best  and  most  economical  principles  that  ex- 
perience can  suggest,  daily  records  of  productions,  &c.,  show  that  2 
gallons,  or  20  pounds  of  milk  per  diem,  through  the  year  can  be  ob- 
tained from  the  selected  dairy  Shorthorns,  inclusive  of  a  few  Ayrshire 
and  Jerseys,  and  a  couple  of  Galloway  and  Shorthorn  crosses. 

At  the  dairy  show  held  in  London,  October  3,  1883,  the  following  is 
the  analyses  of  milk,  with  other  data,  on  which  the  awards  of  prizes 
were  made,  which  results  only  go  to  prove  the  foregone  conclusion  as 
to  the  best  dairy  cattle  in  the  British  Isles,  the  championship  falling 
to  the  Shorthorns,  as  did  also  the  second  honor : 


Breed. 

Age. 

Date  of 
calving. 

Day's 
milk. 

Percent- 
ape 
of  solids. 

Per 
cent,  of 
fat. 

Total 
award. 

Ys.mos. 
1    9 

May  12 

LLs.  oz. 
51 

12.96 

3.85 

Percentage. 
99.12 

Do 

5    6 

Sept.  27 

47 

14.20 

4.71 

92.  05 

Short-born  and  Dutch     ....  ............... 

7 

July  10 

60    4 

12.  12 

2.  8G 

91.59 

7  £ 

Apr.    8 

18    8 

14.  25 

5.54 

87.50 

5    4 

Aug.    5 

36    4 

14.21 

5.14 

81.87 

Devon  .........................    ........... 

4    5 

July     4 

26    8 

14.75 

5.  28 

87.80 

Ayrshire 

4    G 

Oct.      3 

30    4 

14.18 

5.12 

79.81 

'  Weights  by  breeds. — In  pursuance  of  the  capabilities  of  the  recognized 
breeds,  I  will  give  their  live  weights  when  at  the  highest  state  of  per- 
fection which  skillful  treatment  can  bring  them  to,  and  by  which  it 
will  be  seen  that  the  combined  properties  of  milking  and  grazing  do  not 
exist  in  all  renowned  breeds,  although  the  winner  of  the  champion 
dairy  prize  on  the  3d  of  October  is  of  the  same  breed  as  that  which 
carried  the  first  prize  in  the  same  hall  in  December,  1883,  as  best  fat 
cow  in  her  class,  and  weighing  2,352  pounds,  the  heaviest  of  all  female 
exhibits,  and,  what  is  more  worthy  of  remark,  another  Shorthorn  heifer 
a  little  over  two  years  old  obtained  the  champion  prize  against  all 
breeds,  weight,  or  sex ;  her  live  weight  being  2,049  pounds. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM. 


203 


The  following  table  shows  the  live  weight  of  two  of  the  heaviest  ani- 
mals in  each  class,  but  not  necessarily  all  prize  winners,  as  in  many 
instances  the  prizes  went  to  the  lighter  animals  : 


Breed. 

Steers  (not 
over 
2  years). 

Steers  (not 
over 
3  years). 

Steers  (not 
over 
4  years). 

Heifers 
under 
4  years. 

Cow, 
4  years. 

Devons         ...          .                 .         < 

Cwt.  qr.  Ib. 
10    2  10 

Cwt.  qr.  Ib. 
14    1    4 

Cwt.  qr.  Ib. 

17    2    6 

Owt.  qr.  Ib. 
•  14    1    4 

Cwt.  qr.  Ib. 
17    1    4 

10    1  14 
14    0  22 

12    1  22 
17    0  24 

17    2    8 
18    2    6 

13    3  12 

18    3  37 

13    3  15 

20    3    5 

Shorthorns                                                 < 

13    3  18 
13    3    4 

1614 
19    0  27 

17    3  14 
19    3 

18    1    5 

21 

13    1  14 
13    2  25 

18    3    8 
17    3  24 

19    1  20 
20    1    1 

16    3  12 
17    3    2 

19    2  13 
20    0    5 

Red-Polled                                                 \ 

13    3 

15    1  20 

19    0    5 
17    3    6 

18    3    2 
17    2    4 

Scotch  Polled                                           1 

14    1 

15    1  20 
19    1    2 

14    3    6 
21    0  23 

17    2  22 

18    1  10 

19    0  22 

14    1  10 

Highlanders  (any  age) :  19  cwt.  1  qr.  1  Ib. ;  17  cwt.  2  qrs.  18  Ibs. ;  14  cwt.  5  Ibs. ;  and  13  cwt.  2  qrs. 
10  Ibs. 
Welsh  oxen  (any  age) :  22  cwt.  1  qr.  6  Ibs.,  and  19  cwt.  3  qrs.  2  Ibs. 

Special  excellences. — After  making  special  remarks  on  the  merits  and 
demerits  of  the  various  British  breeds  of  cattle  which  are  recognized 
by  the  Eoyal  Agricultural  Society  of  England  and  protected  by  herd- 
book  records,  there  are  incidents  and  freaks  of  nature  which  are  in 
some  degree  calculated  to  mystify  the  opinions  of  the  inexperienced. 
For  instance,  there  is  the  enormous  weight  of  the  Devon  oxen,  which 
is  not  characteristic  of  the  breed.  The  same  thing  occurs  in  Welsh 
Runts.  The  pure  Devon  is  a  small,  compact,  hardy  animal,  of  fine 
quality,  medium  milker,  of  rich  quality.  The  Hereford  is  of  large  size ; 
good  grazer ;  inferior  in  milk  yield.  The  Shorthorn,  great  size,  good 
grazer,  superior  milker.  The  Aberdeen,  compact,  with  good  size  ;  good 
grazer  and  medium  milker.  The  Galloway,  slightly  smaller  than  the 
Aberdeen,  but  very  compact  in  form ;  medium  milkers,  of  rich  quality. 
The  Highlander,  small  and  compact ;  milk  rich,  and  fair  quantity  for 
size,  but  not  often  used  for  dairy  purposes ;  they  are  bred  on  the  hills, 
run  together  and  reared  in  the  same  manner  as  mountain  sheep  j  their 
beef  is  of  the  finest  quality.  The  Ayrshire,  small-sized,  bred  for  dairy 
purposes,  in  which  they  excel ;  good  grazers,  but,  as  very  few  steers 
are  kept,  little  is  said  about  the  quality  or  weight  of  beef.  The  Jersey, 
small,  deer-like  ;  gives  rich  milk  and  fine  quality  of  butter  5  no  preten- 
sions to  beef- producing.  The  Welsh,  useful  dairy  animals ;  over  me- 
dium size;  milk,  rich;  vary  according  to  food  and  treatment;  not  so 
rich  and  graceful  in  general  appearance,  but  a  good,  sound,  hardy  ani- 
mal. The  Sussex,  great  size,  fair  milkers,  good  grazers  ;  lor  this  breed 
there  are  great  hopes  of  further  distinction.  The  Longhorn,  large 
frame,  hardy,  and  good  grazers ;  formerly  good  butter  and  cheese  pro- 
ducers. The  Norfolk  Pollie,  thick,  chubby  animals ;  good  dairy  cows 
and  grazers,  but  do  not  possess  that  graceful  figure  that  characterizes  the 
Northern  Follies  ;  it  seems  to  be  fighting  its  way  to  greater  popularity ; 
some  attention  has  been  paid  to  them  by  foreign  buyers.  The  Guern- 
sey belongs  to  the  same  group  of  islands  as  the  Jerseys,  and  possesses 
the  same  dairy  properties,  giving  a  little  more  milk,  and  is  heavier  in 
carcass,  but  plainer  in  form. 


204  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING 

CONCLUDING  RECOMMENDATIONS. 

Before  concluding,  it  may  not  be  deemed  inexpedient  to  introduce  a 
few  qualifying  remarks  that  may  not  produce  any  detracting  influence, 
but  have  a  tendency  to  establish  confidence  in  my  experience  and  hum- 
ble endeavors  to  give  a  correct  and  unbiased  description  of  the  capa- 
bilities of  the  various  breeds  of  cattle  referred  to  in  this  report.  For 
many  years  I  had  the  entire  management  of  the  extensive  and  distin- 
guished herd  of  Shorthorns  belonging  to  the  late  Earl  of  Ducie,  Glou- 
cestershire, as  well  as  the  Herefords,  Scots,  and  Jerseys,  which  were 
kept  more  as  experimental  auxiliaries  than  for  the  permanent  establish- 
ment of  the  breeds.  I  established  a  considerable  herd  of  selected  Short- 
horn cattle  for  Napoleon  III,  and  although  they  were  located  in  the  two 
extreme  temperatures,  they  answered  admirably,  and  just  as  their  in- 
fluence was  beginning  to  be  felt  in  France  their  further  development 
and  usefulness  were  suddenly  cut  short  by  the  unfortunate  Franco- 
Prussian  war.  I  also  formed,  and  for  many  years  superintended,  the 
well-known  herd  of  Shorthorns  belonging  to  Colonel  Gunter,  in  addi- 
tion to  Galloways  and  other  smaller  herds  of  different  breeds,  and  have 
acted  on  nearly  three  hundred  occasions  as  judge  of  stock  at  agricult- 
ural societies  in  the  United  Kingdom.  My  remarks,  therefore,  as  far  as 
possible,  are  founded  on  facts  obtained  by  long  experience,  and  I  am 
actuated  by  no  motive  or  interest  beyond  a  desire  to  submit  this  report 
with  as  much  truth  and  as  few  errors  as  my  abilities  will  allow. 

I  have  for  forty  years  given  my  undivided  attention  to  breeding  and 
feeding  of  nearly  every  description  and  breed,  during  which  time  I 
have  shipped  to  all  quarters  where  British  breeds  are  to  be  found, 
and  have  had  more  than  ordinary  opportunities  afforded  of  acquiring  a 
thorough  practical  knowledge  of  the  true  merits  of  the  various  breeds. 
I  have  always  found  the  Shorthorn,  Hereford,  Devon,  and  Scotch  Pol- 
lies  answer  admirably  when  exported  to  Australia,  New  Zealand,  South 
America,  the  United  States,  and  Canada.  I  entertain  a  very  high 
opinion  of  the  Sussex  cattle  for  exportation.  There  are  many  other 
English  breeds,  but  I  think  1  have  named  the  animals  best  adapted  for 
other  climates.  The  Norfolk  Pollies  answer  well  with  liberal  keep,  but 
cannot  rough  it  with  the  Scots.  The  Highlanders,  on  account  of  their 
wildness,  have  not  often  been  tried,  but  they  can  easily  be  subdued  and 
brought  to  be  very  gentle. 

The  full  details  of  the  properties  of  our  best  British  breeds  of  cattle 
are  embodied  in  the  separate  reports  under  the  different  heads,  which 
facts  strongly  support  my  confident  recommendation  of  the  following 
breeds  as  the  best  adapted  -for  exportation  to  the  United  States  and 
Canada,  viz,  Shorthorns,  Herefords,  Devons,  Galloways,  Aberdeens, 
and  Sussex.  These  animals  possess  strong,  robust  constitutions,  and 
other  essential  properties  abundantly  fit  them  to  fully  maintain  their 
reputation  when  suitably  located,  and  every  bre'ed  named  is  capable  of 
further  development  under  circumstances  more  favorable  to  their  varied 
habits.  The  Scotch  Pollies  can  stand  severe  climates  with  inferior  food, 
and  the  heavier  cattle  will  freely  respond  to  the  rich  fare  of  the  plains. 
Where  milk  and  butter  are  made  specialties  the  Jersey  and  Ayrshire 
are  invaluable.  The  West  Highlander,  if  once  located  in  the  United 
States,  would  gain  friends  where  the  climate  did  not.  necessitate  the 
winter  housing.  The  Longhorns  are  very  ungainly,  both  by  rail  and 
ship,  owing  to  their  ponderous  horns. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  205 

PRICES  OF  BRITISH   CATTLE  FOR  EXPORT* 

The  prices  at  which  really  good  formed  animals  ought  to  be  purchased 
will  vary  a  little  according  to  age  and  other  circumstances. 

The  subjoined  list  contains  the  prices  at  which  genuine  good  animals 
of  the  different  breeds  can  be  obtained  : 

Shorthorn  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree £35  to  £50 

Hereford  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree :•_..  35  50 

Devon  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 30  45 

Galloway  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 25  40 

Aberdeen  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 30  45 

Ayrshire  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 20  35 

Sussex  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 30  40 

Norfolk  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 30  40 

Jersey  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 20  30 

Welsh  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 20  30 

Longhorn  cow  or  heifer,  with  pedigree 30 

If  noted  blood  and  renowned  fame  are  required,  higher  prices  would 
have  to  be  paid;  and  all  breeds  have  favorite  families  and  lines  of  blood 
which  do  not  in  all  cases  arise  from  any  greater  excellence  they  possess. 

HOW  TO  SELECT  CATTLE  FOR  EXPORT. 

In  selecting  animals  for  export  a  saving  of  20  per  cent,  can  be  effected 
by  knowing  the  breeders  as  well  as  the  breed,  and  devoting  sufficient 
time  for  due  examination.  Limited  time  and  hurried  selections  is  often 
followed  by  disappointment  to  the  purchaser,  and  throws  discredit  upon 
the  breed  when  landed  on  foreign  shores.  I  think  it  quite  practicable 
to  purchase  half  a  dozen  choice  specimens  of  each  breed  with  authenti- 
cated pedigrees,  including  young  bulls  to  match,  and  delivered  in  New 
York  free  of  all  charges  for  the  sum  of  £50  each.  Liverpool  to  New 
York  or  Portland  is  the  best  route.  Passage  of  cattle,  including  food 
and  water,  £6  per  head ;  insurance  from  10  to  12  per  cent.,  according  to 
the  season  of  the  year  and  vessel  employed.  The  charge  for  man  to 
attend  upon  them  is  regulated  by  the  number  of  cattle  shipped. 
JOSEPH  LAY  FAULKNER,  M.  E.  0.  V.  S.  L., 

Veterinary  Surgeon, 

SOUTH  MILFORD,  COUNTY  OF  YORK, 

West  Riding,  England,  January  3,  1884. 


JERSEY  CATTLE. 

REPORT  BY  CONSULAR  AGENT  RENOTJF,  OF  JERSEY. 

The  breed  of  horned  cattle  in  the  island  has  long  been  known,  and  is 
in  many  respects  remarkable.  The  important  peculiarities  are  the  small 
size  and  delicate  frame  of  the  animals,  the  large  quantity  and  rich  quality 
of  the  milk  they  yield,  and  the  yellowness  of  the  fat,  and  of  the  butter 
made  from  the  milk.  The  first  result  may,  no  doubt,  have  been  produced 
by  the  habit  of  breeding  in  and  in,  which  has  long  since  been  carried  to 
such  an  extent  that  each  island  has  its  own  breed,  which  may  not  be 
mixed  on  any  consideration  whatever.  Perhaps  the  same  cause  com- 
bined with  the  practice  of  tethering,  the  pampering  with  various  kinds 
of  food,  and  the  climate  may  be  sufficient  to  account  for  the  other  pecu- 
liarities also.  Although  very  small,  many  of  the  cows  are  remarkable 


206  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

for  symmetry,  and  they  rarely  show  vicious  temper.  They  have  a  fine 
curved  taper  horn,  a  slender  nose,  a  fine  shin,  and  deer-like  form, 
the  different  island  breeds  the  Aldemey  is  the  smallest  and  most  deli- 
cate, and  the  Jersey  is  somewhat  larger,  but  not  very  different.  The 
Guernsey  cattle  are  larger  boned,  taller,  and  stouter  in  all  respects,  and 
have  a  less  fine  coat.  The  color  of  the  coat  is  very  various,  being  com- 
monly red,  red  and  white,  gray  and  white,  or  cream  colored,  but  there 
are  £0od  beasts  of  black,  and  black  and  white  color,  with  a  dingy  ridge 
down  the  back.  All  the  cattle  are  yellow  round  the  eyes,  and  within 
the  ears,  and  this  peculiar  tendency,  it  has  been  already  remarked,  is 
accompanied  by  a  similar  color  of  the  butter  made  from  their  milk,  and 
of  their  fat  when  killed.  The  cause  of  this  peculiarity  of  color  has  been 
an  object  of  much  unlearned  and  learned  speculation.  It  is  evident  that 
the  milk  is  not  the  only  secretion  of  a  yellow  color,  for  in  addition  to  the 
eyes  and  ears  being  tinted,  it  is  one  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  best  ani- 
mals that  there  is  a  yellow  tinge  at  the  root  of  the  tail.  It  has  been 
suggested  that  the  color  is  derived  from  bile,  but  yellowness  is  not  the 
essential  character  of  that  secretion.  Its  properties  are  to  be  bitter, 
carbonized,  and  to  perform  certain  functions  in  the  animal  economy. 
Colorless  bile  is  possible,  and  so,  beyond  a  doubt,  is  yellowness  without 
bile.  But  that  the  coloring  matter  of  the  milk  and  tissues  of  the  Chan- 
nel Islands  cow  may  also  be  the  coloring  matter  of  the  bile  is  an  hypoth- 
esis which  no  physiologist  would  condemn,  so  is  the  doctrine  that  the 
near  vicinity  of  the  sea  may  supply  an  excess  of  soda  in  the  grass,  and 
that  the  practice  of  closely  tethering,  by  limiting  the  amount  of  exercise, 
may  engender  a  tendency  to  something  akin  to  bile,  if  not  bile  itself,  to 
be  in  excess.  The  large  yield  of  milk  from  the  island  cows  and  the  rich- 
ness of  the  milk  for  butter  are  well  known.  Extreme  cases  show  that 
from  16  to  17  pounds  per  week  of  butter  have  been  made  from  the  milk 
of  one  cow.  The  cattle  are  fed  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  milked  three 
times  a  day.  Each  cow  requires  about  If  English  acres  of  grass  land, 
and  is  fed  during  winter,  from  the  beginning  of  November,  on  mangel- 
wurzel,  turnips,  parsnips,  and  hay.  Good  cheese  can  be  made  from  the 
milk,  but  it  is  not  manufactured  for  sale. 

THOMAS  EENOUF, 

Consular  Agent. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULAR  AGENCY, 

Jersey,  February  20,  1885. 


Products  of  Jersey  cattle* 
[Inclosure  in  Consular  Agent  Kenouf  s  report.] 

Name  of  breed :  Jerseys ;  annual  average  pounds  of  milk :  2,400 ;  milk  to  pounds  of 
cheese:  not  made,  milk  being  too  rich;  name  of  country:  Jersey,  Channel  Islands; 
size  at  maturity :  cow :  length,  7  feet ;  girth,  6  feet ;  height,  4  feet  2  inches ;  bull : 
length,  7  feet ;  girth,  6  feet  10  inches ;  height,  4  feet  6  inches ;  live  weight  of  cow  : 
1,000  pounds;  live  weight  of  bull:  1,200  pounds:  age  at  maturity:  3  to  3£  years; 
weight  of  meat  at  maturity:  bull,  800  pounds;  'cow,  580  pounds;  origin  of  breed: 
Jersey,  no  animals  being  allowed  to  be  imported  except  for  slaughtering  purposes,  so 
that  the  breed  is  kept  pure ;  few  cows  are  slaughtered  at  maturity  or  in  condition  ; 
if  barren  they  do  not  feed  well,  and  when  in  milk  difficult  to  fatten,  owing  to  their 
great  yeld  of  milk  ;  the  average  price  of  butter  is  Is.  3d.  per  pound. 

Topography  :  Altitude,  139  feet  above  sea  level ;  mean  temperature,  51°  9' ;  maxi- 
mum, 87°  7' ;  minimum,  21°  3';  soil:  loam,  clay,  sand,  and  gravel. 

"The  Jersey  pound  is  8fc  per  cent,  heavier  than  the  English  pound. 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  207 

Substratum :  According  to  locality,  granite,  clay,  and  red  gravel.  Cultivated  grasses : 
Timothy  and  lucerne  in  small  quantities,  about  one-third  to  two-thirds  clover,  rye- 
grass. 

Methods  of  housing. — Well  appointed  and  warm  stables  with  good  straw  litter  in 
winter.  In  summer  they  are  left  in  the  fields  except  in  bad  weather. 

Feeding. — From  spring  to  autumn  they  are  tethered  in  the  fields  to  rye-grass  and 
clover ;  in  winter  they  are  fed  on  hay,  turnips,  mangel-wurzel,  and  parsnips. 

Handling  products. — The  milk  is  kept  in  clean  dairies,  and  churning  is  done  twice 
a  week  j  no  cheese  is  made  when  cows  are  in  full  milk ;  they  are  milked  three  times 
daily. 


CATTLE  IN  CORNWALL. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  FOX,  OF  PLYMOUTH. 

In  answer  to  Department  circular,  I  beg  to  state  that  I  employed 
special  agents,  who  were  considered  most  likely  to  be  able  to  procure  in- 
formation as  to  breeding  cattle,  but  regret  to  add  that,  except  in  two 
instances,  they  have  been  altogether  unsuccessful  in  their  efforts. 
They  report  that  there  exists,  on  the  part  of  farmers  generally  in  this 
district,  either  a  reluctance  to  afford  information  on  the  subject,  or  a 
want  of  sufficient  data  to  enable  them  to  give  the  desired  particulars 
with  such  accuracy  as  would  make  them  desirable. 

I  inclose  form,  which  contains  particulars  obtained  from  a  large 
breeder,  and  copy  of  a  letter  from  a  large  farmer,  who  replied  to  the 
application  made  to  him,  not  in  the  form  attached  to  the  circular,  but 
by  general  remarks,  in  the  form  of  a  letter. 

HOWAED  FOX, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Plymouth,  July  25,  1884. 


SPECIAL  STATISTICS  CONCERNING  CATTLE 'IN  CORNWALL. 
[Supplied  by  Mr.  T.  Hosken,  of  Loggens,  Hoyle,  Cornwall.]      • 

Breed:  Shorthorn. 

Milk :  Keeps  no  account  of  milk,  cattle  being  reared  for  breeding  purposes^  and 
nsually  sold  at  two  years  old.  Dairymen  pay  attention  to  milking  qualities  in  breeding. 

Live  weight:  At  maturity:  cow,-12cwt. ;  bull,  26  cwt. 

Topography:  Altitude:  200  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Temperature:  mean, 
C0.5;  summer,  56.2;  winter,  41.  Soil:  Top  soil  a  sandy  loam. 

Substratum :  Sandstone,  marl,  and  clay,  with  spar.     Dexter  granite  and  clay  slate. 

Cultivated  grasses :  Timothy,  red  and  white  clover,  rye,  and  cocksfoot. 

Housing  :  Store  cattle  in  open  boxes ;  turned  out  every  day  for  exercise  except  in 
yery  severe  weather.  Feeding  cattle,  in  close  houses  well  ventilated. 

Feeding :  Fed  on  roots,  hay,  chaff,  and  a  little  meal. 


Mr.  Joel  Howe,  farmer,  to  Mr.  Cock. 
[Inclosure  in  Consul  Fox's  report.] 

GARE  LAMORRAN,  November  20,  1883. 

I  have  been  looking  over  the  paper  (tabulated  form)  you  sent  me,  and  I  am  very 
sorry  that  I  am  not  able  to  fill  it  up,  as  I  would  take  a  good  bit  of  trouble  for  Mr.  Fox. 

I  have  no  idea  as  to  the  amount  of  milk  a  cow  would  give  in  a  year.  It  would  de- 
pend on  the  breed  and  the  size  of  the  cow.  Jersey  or  Guernsey  would  be  the  richest 


208  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

milk,  and  the  most  and  best  butter,  according  to  the  milk,  but  I  think  a  cross-breed 
cow  would  produce  more  in  the  year,  being  a  larger  bullock,  and  would  come  to  the 
butcher  with  more  weight  when  finished. 

I  can  only  refer  to  our  own  county.  The  climate  varies  so  much  at  the  same  alti- 
tude that  we  must  study  our  own  particular  farms  as  to  what  breed  wo  ought  to  keep, 
and  I  presume  it  would  be  the  same  in  America.  Shorthorns  will  not  do  at  all  in  tho 
north  of  our  county  because  it  is  so  bleak  and  cold.  Their  bowels  are  so  lax  they  be- 
come thin  and  poor,  but  here  in  the  south,  on  tbe  best  and  most  sheltered  land,  they 
do  very  well.  But  I  believe  the  Devons  and  Herefords  are  the  most  profitable  for 
feeding  purposes,  having  less  bone  and  more  beef  in  their  best  cuts,  and  being  more 
hardy.  They  can  bear  the  frequent  changes  of  weather  better  than  the  Shorthorns. 
They  are  not  so  lax  in  tbeir  bowels,  and  do  not  require  so  much  nor  such  good  food.  I 
should  think  the  bullocks  of  Cornwall  paid  tho  farmers  from  £5  to  £6  per  head  per 
year,  without  corn  or  artificial  food,  but  of  course  the  milking  cows  pay  more.  Then 
the  cost  of  labor  would  be  more. 
I  am,  &c., 

JOEL  ROWE. 


CATTLE  IN  SCOTLAND. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  WELLS,  OF  DUNDEE. 

In  submitting  herewith  auEeport  on  breeding  cattle,"  I  have  to  state 
that  I  have  consulted  many  of  the  leading  cattle  breeders  of  high 
standing  in  this  district,  inspected  several  herds,  and  procured  all  the 
information  within  my  reach  in  relation  to  the  subject.  I  have  secured 
photographs  of  representative  animals  of  the  several  breeds,  and  given 
a  short  history  of  them.  The  photographs  will  be  found  to  convey  a 
more  accurate  description  of  the  animals  than  cuts  or  lithographs.  I 
am  under  obligation  to  William  Smith,  esq.,  of  Benholm  Castle,  Kincar- 
dineshire,for  the  information  he  gave  me  regarding  dead  and  live  weight 
of  stock  and  kindred  matters;  also  to  J.  W.  Barclay,  esq.,  member  of 
Parliament  for  Forfarshire,  Scotland,  who  is  a  practical  farmer,  owning 
a  considerable  herd  of  pure  Polled  Angus  cattle  on  his  farm  at  Auchla- 
pan,  Aberdeen  shire,  and  is  chairman  of  the  Arkansas  Valley  Land  and 
Cattle  Company,  which  has  a  herd  of  25,000  head  in  Colorado.  He  has 
recently  visited  this  ranch  and  there  introduced  Polled  Angus  and  Gal- 
loway bull$.  Mr.  Barclay  is  a  recognized  authority  on  cattle  breeding 
and  agricultural  matters,  and  accordingly  he  has  favored  LIO  with  in- 
formation relative  to  "  the  best  animals  to  export  to  the  United  States  " 
"  the  purchasing  price  of  the  animals,"  and  "  the  best  means  of  increasing 
the  exports  of  meat  to  this  country  from  the  United  States."  To  Thomas 
Ferguson,  esq.,  of  Kinochtry,  near  Coupar  Angus,  and  others  I  am  par- 
ticularly obligated  for  valuable  information  regarding  the  Polled  Angus 
and  other  breeds  of  cattle  within  this  district.  Mr.  Ferguson  has  been 
a  contributor  to  various  agricultural  papers  in  Great  Britain  and 
America,  and  has  received  prizes  for  reports  and  essays  on  agricultural 
subjects,  and  was  the  first  to  direct  tho  attention  of  American  stock 
breeders  to  the  superior  merits  of  the  Polled  Angus  cattle.  He  has 
made  the  breeding  of  cattle  a  specialty  for  tho  last  forty-five  years,  and 
has  now  one  of  the  finest  herds  of  Polled  Angus  cattle  in  Scotland. 

ihe  different  breeds  of  cattle  in  this  district  are  the  Polled  Angus, 
bhorthorns,  Ayrshire,  West  Highland,  and  Polled  Galloway.  A  very 
small  number  in  the  aggregate  of  the  Alderneys  and  Jerseys  are  to  be 
Jound  m  the  parks  of  noblemen,  but  the  five  breeds  mentioned  with 
their  crosses,  undoubtedly  constitute  the  staple  cattle  in  this  district. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  209 

THE  POLLED  ABERDEEN  OR  ANGUS  BREED. 

The  farmers  of  Aberdeenshire,  it  is  stated,  have  done  much  to  im- 
prove this  breed  and  to  make  its  beef  famous  in  the  southern  markets. 
The  number  of  this  breed  of  cattle  in  Aberdeenshire  is  said  to  be  greater 
than  in  all  the  rest  of  Scotland,  and  that  district  produced  the  man  that 
obtained  the  largest  number  of  prizes  awarded  to  any  one  man  for  ex- 
cellence in  this  breed,  viz,  the  late  Mr.  William  McCoinbie,  of  Tillyfour. 

In  Aberdeenshire  there  are  many  celebrated  breeders  of  this  stock. 
Among  the  prominent  ones  may  be  mentioned  Mr.  G.  Wilken,  of  Wa- 
terside, of  Forbes,  who  owns  an  extensive  herd,  and  who  has  sent  nearly 
1,000  head  of  these  cattle  to  the  United  States  and  Canada  within  re- 
cent years.  It  has  just  been  publicly  stated  in  the  Scotch  newspapers 
that  this  gentleman  has  been  offered  and  refused  $50,000  from  America 
for  the  privilege  of  picking  a  hundred  head  from  his  valuable  herd  of 
this  breed.  The  following  lithographs  show  specimens  of  the  breed 
from  Mr.  Wilken's  herd. 

This  breed  ranks  as  one  of  the  highest,  if  not  the  highest,  of  beef,  pro- 
ducing cattle  in  Scotland,  and  are  called  Polled  Angus  for  the  reason  that 
they  are  without  horns  (polled),  and  wei  3  first  raised  and  bred  in  the 
territory  called  Angus,  which  lies  along  the  base  of  the  Grampian  Hills, 
embracing  the  Strathmore  Valley,  and  extending  north  nearly  to  Ab- 
erdeen. These  ancient  cattle  remained  in  their  native  state  &om  time 
almost  immemorial  until  comparatively  recent  date.  They  were  origi- 
nally of  all  colors  and  shapes.  In  the  year  1808,  the  late  Mr.  Hugh 
Watson,  of  Keillor,  near  Coupar  Angus,  whose  herd  had  been  owned 
by  his  ancesters  for  hundreds  of  years,  began  to  try  to  effect  some  im- 
provement in  the  meat-producing  capacity  of  his  cattle,  and  his  efforts 
were  crowned  with  remarkable  success.  Mr.  Thomas  Ferguson  also  in- 
herited a  herd  of  cattle  from  his  father,  whose  "Doddies"  (as  these 
cattle  were  called)  had  been  closely  bred  for  generations  without  any 
change  of  sires,  only  the  calf  from  the  best  cow  being  retained  as  a  bull. 
In  1839  Mr.  Ferguson  purchased  some  heifers  from  Mr.  Watson,  and  in 
years  subsequently  some  more  bulls  and  heifers,  and  finding  them  so 
much  superior  to  those  he  received  from  his  father,  he  immediately  com- 
menced breeding  the  Keillor  cattle,  and  from  that  time  till  now  has  made 
the  breeding  of  Polled  Angus  cattle  a  business.  He  adopted  what  is 
called  the  "in  and  in"  line  of  breeding  for  more  than  thirty  years, 
rarely  going  outside  of  his  own  stock  for  fresh  blood,  and  it  is  by  this 
system  that  he  attributes  his  success  as  a  breeder. 

I  visited  this  gentleman's  farm,  called  Kinnochtry,  situated  in  the 
beautiful  and  fertile  valley  of  Strathmore.  His  home  farm  comprises 
420  acres,  for  which  he  pays  a  yearly  rental  of  $8  per  acre.  In  addition 
to  this  rental  he  is  at  great  expense  for  artificial  fertilizers,  stocking  his 
farm,  paying  servants'  wages,  &c.,  yet  he  has  made  stock-raising  profit- 
able, and  he  informed  me  that  he  realized  this  year  from  his  cattle  alone 
over  $20,000.  He  has  a  herd  of  over  100  head  of  very  fine  pedigreed 
Polled  Angus  cattle,  consisting  of  2  stud  of  bulls,  41  cows,  and  the  re- 
mainder calves  and  yearlings.  He  stated  that  he  had  just  sold  20  bull- 
calves  to  Mr.  George  Whitfield,  of  the  Government  model  farm,  Canada, 
for  $300  each. 

The  beef  of  the  Polled  Angus  cattle  is  of  a  superior  kind;  it  gives  a 
very  high  percentage  of  dead  meat  to  live  weight;  in  butcher's  phrase, 
"it  dies  well  and  cuts  up"  admirably.  The  cattle  are  in  general  form 
lengthy,  deep,  wide,  and  even-proportioned,  and  are  docile  in  dispo- 
sition, easily  kept,  and  come  to  maturity  early.  They  are  hardy  and 
H.  Ex.  51 — — 14 


210  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

rigorous,  and  can  adapt  themselves  to  most  all  climates.  They  are  uni- 
formly black  in  color.  When  well  fed  they  mature  at  from  24  to  28 
months.  The  average  weight  of  2J-year-old  steers  is  about  1,000  pounds 
dead  weight,  and  will  bring  in  the  Scotch  and  English  markets  from 
$150  to  $200  each.  They  are  more  particularly  distinguished  as  beef 
producers  than  for  being  suitable  for  the  dairy,  being  only  fairly  good  as 
milkers.  They  are  bred  and  raised  extensively  in  the  northeast  of 
Scotland. 

Mr.  Barclay,  member  of  Parliament  for  Forfarshire ;  Mr.  John  Hanny, 
of  Gavenwood,  Banff;  Mr.  Hume,  near  Brechir ;  Mr.  T.  M.  Nicoll,  of 
Littleton,  Kirriernuir,  and  several  others  have  paid  great  attention  to 
the  breeding  of  Polled  Angus,  and  have  now  excellent  herds  of  these 
cattle. 

The  bull  shown  in  lithograph  No.  1  is  Prince  of  the  Realm,  bred  by 
Mr.  Ferguson  at  Kinochtry,  now  the  property  of  Mr.  John  Hannay,  of 
Gavenwood,  Banff,  Scotland.  This  bull  while  in  the  possession  of  the 
breeder  gained  a  first  prize  at  the  Highland  Society's  show  at  Kelso  in 
1880,  as  a  two-year-old,  and  the  first  prize  at  the  same  society's  show 
at  Glasgow  in  1882,  besides  a  number  of  champion  prizes  iu  minor 
shows.  At  Glasgow,  at  the  age  of  four  years  and  fourteen  days,  he 
weighed  2,600  pounds,  with  a  heart  girth  of  8  feet  5  inches.  Since  he 
passed  into  Mr.  Hanray's  p?S'  ession  he  has  gained  other  prizes  and 
champion  plates.  He  has  been  spoken  of  as  one  of  the  best  Polled 
Angus  bulls  which  has  been  seen  for  years. 

THE  POLLED  GALLOWAY  BREED, 

This  breed  is  black  and  polled  like  the  Angus,  but  in  disposition  and 
maturing  properties  it  more  resembles  the  West  Highlander. 

The  Galloways  may  be  described  as  the  cattle  of  the  Southern  High- 
lands, while  the  West  Highland  cattle  occupy  the  northern  Highlands 
of  Scotland. 

The  following  interesting  report  on  Polled  Galloway  cattle  was  pre- 
pared for  me  by  the  council  of  the  Galloway  Society  of  Great  Britain  : 

POLLED  GALLOWAY  BREED. 

[Eeport  prepared  by  the  council  of  tho  Galloway  Cattle  Society  of  Great  Britain  for  Consul  Wells,  of 

Dundee.] 

This  breed  of  polled  cattle  took  its  name  from  the  province  of  Galloway,  which 
now  comprises  the  two  southwestern  counties  of  Scotland.  Pedigreed  herds  of  this 
breed  are  principally  kept  in  Galloway  and  Dumfries-shire,  in  Scotland  and  in  Cum- 
berland, the  most  northwesterly  county  of  England.  The  origin  of  the  Galloways  is 
lost  in  the  mist  of  antiquity.  An  allegation  has  never  been  made  in  any  well- informed 
quarter  that  they  are  not  an  original  and  distinct  breed  of  cattle.  From  time  imme- 
morial they  have  been  polled  or  hornless.  There  is  a  tradition  mentioned  by  some 
writers  that  in  remote  ages  they  were  provided  with  horns,  but  it  is  nothing  more 
than  a  tradition,  for  in  the  earliest  notices  of  tho  breed,  centuries  ago,  there  is  no  allu- 
sion made  to  there  being  horned.  So  emphatically  are  they  a  hornless  breed  that  it 
is  a  certain  mark  of  an  animal  not  being  a.  pure  Galloway  if  it  has  the  smallest  trace 
of  horns.  The  Galloway  breed  of  cattle  was  improved  as  early  as  if  not  earlier  than 
any  other  breed  of  British  cattle.  Immediately  after  the  union  of  England  and  Scot- 
land an  extensive  demand  sprang  up  from  the  southeastern  counties'of  England  for 
Galloway  cattle,  and  this  induced  tho  breeders  to  make  great  efforts  to  improve  their 
bovine  stock,  in  which  they  were  very  successful.  This  improvement  was  brought  about 
not  with  crossing  with  other  breeds,  but  in  breeding  from  tho  best  and  handsomest 
of  both  sexes,  and  by  feeding  and  management.  The  improvement  effected  during 
the  present  century  has  been  great,  and  it  has  been  brought  about  by  the  same  means, 
namely,  by  systematic  and  skillful  mating  of  the  best  specimens  of  both  sexes,  and. 


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THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  211 

also  by  attention  to  diet  and  general  management.  The  Galloways,  as  a  breed,  can- 
not lay  claim  to  any  superiority  as  milkers.  Their  milk  is  rich  in  quality,  but  the 
quantity  they  give  is  not  large.  However,  the  milking  faculty  runs  in  some  strains, 
and  individuals  of  them  are  excellent  dairy  cows.  It  is  mainly  as  a  beef-producing 
breed  that  Galloways  have  made  a  name  for  themselves.  The  quality  of  their  beef  is 
similar  to  that  of  the  Aberdeen,  Angus,  and  West  Highland.  The  beef  of  these  three 
breeds  ranks  as  "  prime  Scots  "  in  the  Smithneld  and  other  leading  British  fat  markets, 
realizing  there  the  highest  current  rates.  Its  superiority  arises  from  the  fact  that  it 
is  well  marbled,  the  fat  being  well  intermingled  with  the  lean. 

In  renpect  of  proportion  of  dead  to  live  weight  Galloways  kill  unusually  well,  ma- 
tured animals  of  the  breed  being  estimated  by  experienced  butchers  to  dress  upwards 
of  60  per  cent,  of  their  live  weight.  Galloways  arrive  at  maturity  when  from  two  to 
three  years  of  age,  according  to  the  way  they  are  kept  when  young.  A  well-fed  Gal- 
loway may  bo  estimated  to  weigh  when  two  years  and  nine  months  old  1,600  pounds 
live  weight,  and  1,000  pounds  dead  weight.  Many  weigh  more,  but  others  reared 
under  adverse  circumstances  arc  less.  No  cattle  in  Britain  are  hardier  than  the  Gal- 
loways except  the  West  Highlanders,  and  the  difference  between  these  two  breeds  in 
this  respect  is  very  slight.  In  all  improvements  of  tho  breed  the  retention  of  this 
ancient  characteristic  of  them  has  been  successfully  kept  in  view.  While  their  skin 
is  mellow  to  the  touch  it  is  moderately  thick.  Moreover  the  profusion  of  long,  soft 
hair,  with  a  thick,  mossy  undercoat,  which  has  always  been  characteristic  of  this 
breed,  conduces  to  and  is  symptomatic  of  their  exceptional  hardiness.  The  Gallo- 
ways are  kept  on  the  low-lying  farms,  where  mixed  farming,  grain-growing,  and  cat- 
tle breeding  and  feeding  are  practiced,  and  also  on  the  intermediate  hill  grazings  be- 
tween the  high  mountains  and  the  lower  valleys.  Many  herds  are  located  in  hill- 
lying  districts  where  the  climate  is  so  severe  and  cold  that  the  growth  of  the  cereals 
is  not  attempted.  A  large  number  of  young  Galloways  are  wintered  in  the  open  air, 
"  the  sky  and  the  hills  and  the  glen,"  as  has  been  said,  being  their  only  winter  shel- 
ter. This  system  is  pursued  not  from  scarcity  of  house  accommodation  but  of  delib- 
erate choice,  it  being  found  by  experience  that  from  their  hardy  nature  and  being 
inured  to  exposure  they  are  not  only  able  to  stand  the  severities  of  the  climate,  but 
that  they  thrive  better  and  make  more  progress  during  the  succeeding  summer  and 
autumn  when  wintered  in  the  open  air  than  under  cover.  It  is  a  valued  characteris- 
tic of  tho  Galloways  that  they  thrive  well  when  kept  upon  poor  and  scanty  fare,  and 
indeed  they  have  long  proved  themselves  able  to  stand  adverse  circumstances,  whether 
these  arise  from  soil  or  climate  or  both.  They  are  remarkably  impressive  as  a  breed, 
which  is  no  doubt  due  to  the  length  of  time— at  least  nearly  two  centuries— they 
have  been  bred  from  animals  of  the  same  type  and  possessed  of  tho  same  characteris- 
tics. Alike  in  respect  of  color,  absence  of  horns,  and  general  outline  and  symmetry, 
their  offspring  from  cows  of  other  breeds  so  very  closely  resemble  the  black  Galloway 
Polls  that  it  is  not  easy  to  distinguish  a  pure  from  the  cross-bred  animal. 

When  the  Galloway  bull  is  put  to  horned  cows  of  any  breed  from  95  to  100  per  cent, 
of  the  produce  are  found  to  be  black  and  hornless,  and  in  stamping  their  offspring 
with  their  qualities  otherwise  the  prepotency  of  the  Galloways  is  very  marked. 

Galloways  have  long  been  in  great  favor  for  crossing  with  other  breeds. 

Bulls  of  this  breed  have  been  very  extensively  put  to  both  Short-horns  and  Ayr- 
shire cows,  and  in  England  especially  it  has  been  a  favorite  and  highly  successful  mode 
of  crossing  for  beef  purposes  to  use  the  Short-horn  bull  on  the  Galloway  cow.  By  either 
mode  symmetrical  cattle  of  large  frames  are  produced.  They  are  hardy  and  their  meat 
is  free  from  patchiness,  well  mixed  and  superior.  These  Galloway  crosses  mature 
early  and  reach  very  heavy  weights.  A  Galloway  cattle  society  exists,  its  two  main 
objects  being  (1)  to  maintain  unimpaired  the  purity  of  the  brqed  of  cattle  known  as 
Galloway  cattle,  and  to  promote  the  breeding  of  these  cattle,  and  (2)  to  collect,  verify, 
preserve,  and  publish  in  a  Galloway  herd-book  the  pedigrees  of  the  eaid  cattle  and 
other  useful  information  regarding  them.  The  headquarters  of  this  society  are  at 
Dumfries,  Scotland,  and  it  has  published  eight  issues  of  tho  Herd-Book.* 

Both  of  these  animals  (Nos.  15  and  16)  are  first-prize  winners  at  the  Highland  and 
Agricultural  Society  Show  of  Scotland,  and  are  the  property  of  and  bred  by  Mr.  James 
Cunningham  Yarbreach,  of  Dalbeattie,  Scotland. 

THE  AYESH1KE  AS  DAIRY  CATTLE. 

I  have  been  supplied  with  the  following  information  regarding  this 
breed : 

The  Ayrshire  is  emphatically  the  Scotch  dairy  breed,  and  a  thor- 
oughly thrifty  dairy  cow,  and  one  that  will  fatten  rapidly  when  dry, 

*  Here  follows  a  statement  concerning  the  true  characteristics  of  the  Galloway  breed, 
which  was  not  published  for  the  reason  that  a  similar  statement  appears  in  the  report 
from  Leith,  to  which  the  reader  is  referred. 


212 


CATTLE    AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 


has  few  equals.  The  origin  of  this  breed  is  difficult  to  trace ;  no  par- 
ticular men  seem  to  have  stood  out  conspicuous  from  their  fellows  as 
breeders  or  improvers.  The  chief  excellence  of  the  breed  is  supposed 
to  have  arisen  from  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  climate,  soil,  and  sit- 
uation of  several  of  the  western  counties  of  Scotland.  The  farmers  in 
these  districts  noted  the  points  that  indicated  good  milkers,  and,  as  a 
consequence,  the  best  milking  cows  were  put  to  good  bulls,  and  in  this 
way  a  very  superior  dairy  breed  has  been  established  in  the  west  of 
Scotland,  and  spread  rapidly  over  most  other  parts  of  the  country.  No 
breed  of  cattle  in  Scotland  will  produce  an  equal  quantity  of  milk,  but- 
ter, and  cheese  to  the  Ayrshire.  Many  cows,  when  in  their  best  con- 
dition and  well  fed,  will  yield  3  gallons  per  day  for  three  months,  and 
produce  a  total  of  from  500  to  700  gallons  per  cow  per  year ;  600  gallons 
per  cow  for  the  year  has  been  considered  an  average  on  good  farms. 
The  proportion  of  milk  to  butter  and  cheese,  the  standard  recognized 
in  Ayrshire,  is  about  (in  imperial  British  gallons)  2£  gallons  of  milk  to 
1  pound  of  butter,  and  1  gallon  of  milk  to  1  pound  of  cheese.  The  aver- 
age weight  of  a  gallon  of  milk  is  10  pounds  8  ounces,  and  the  following 
figures  show  the  result  of  a  milking  competition  at  Ayr  on  the  26th 
and  27th  days  of  April,  1861 : 


Name  of  owner. 

Greatest  milk- 
ing. 

Average  of 
four 
milkings. 

"Weight  of 
butter. 

Lbs.  ozg. 
28    11! 

Lbs.  ozs. 
24    31 

Lbs.  02*. 
2       2 

26      0 

24    5 

9         14JL 

W  Reid     

25      7 

20    8} 

2        9 

II  Wallace 

28    14 

28    8£ 

1        9^ 

"W  Reid       

30    15 

27    5J 

3        6i 

25      5 

23    8A 

1      15 

In  the  above  competition  the  greatest  yield  at  a  single  milking  was 
rather  over  3  gallons,  which  produced  at  the  rate  of  15  pounds  of  butter 
per  week. 

Being  a  competition,  and  the  cows  highly  fed,  the  returns  afford  no 
fair  criterion  of  the  ordinary  milking  capacity  of  an  Ayrshire  cow.  Two 
distinct  classes  of  cows  might  be  selected  from  among  the  Ayrshires — 
butter  and  cheese  makers.  Many  cows,  however,  combine  both  the 
butter  and  cheese  making  faculties  in  a  remarkable  degree.  Compared 
with  the  Polled  Angus  and  Shorthorn,  the  Ayrshire  is  a  small  breed, 
but  it  is  said  that  when  crossed  with  a  bull  of  either  of  the  two  breeds 
mentioned,  the  produce  is  an  animal  admirably  adapted  for  maturing 
early  and  fattening  rapidly.  The  color  of  Ayrshires  is  generally  of  red 
and  white  in  spots;  sometimes  white  and  black,  or  red  or  brown,  and 
the  horns  are  fine  and  twisted  upwards.  The  face  long,  with  a  lively 
yet  docile  expression. 

The  figure  of  the  body,  enlarging  from  the  fore  to  the  hind  quarters ; 
broad  across  the  loins ;  the  back  straight ;  the  tail  fine,  long,  and  bushy 
at  the  extremity ;  the  udder  white  and  capacious,  -coming  well  forward 
on  the  belly ;  the  teats  of  middle  size,  set  equally  and  wide  apart  from 
each  other ;  milk  veins  prominent  and  fully  developed. 

THE  WEST  HIGHLANDS. 

This  hardy  breed  of  cattle  may  be  stated  to  ocunpy  as  its  home  tin- 
whole  of  the  West  und  Middle  Highlands  of  Scotland  and  the  Western 
Islands.  No  cattle  are  possessed  of  more  distinctive  and  strongly 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM. 

/narked  features  than  this  breed.  Their  limbs  are  short,  but  mus- 
cular; chests  wide  and  deep;  ribs  well  developed  and  fairly  arched ; 
backs  straight;  neck  and  dewlap  somewhat  coarse  in  the  bull;  horns  of 
great  length,  spreading  and  tipped  with  black  ;  colors  various— brindle, 
dun,  cream,  red,  and  black.  They  give  only  a  small  quantity  of  milk, 
and  are  very  slow  in  arriving  at  maturity,  not  becoming  ripe  until  the 
age  of  five  or  six  years.  Their  beef  is  of  a  very  superior  quality  and 
iheir  hides  make  the  best  of  leather. 

SHORTHORNS  IN  SCOTLAND. 

Shorthorns,  as  their  name  denotes,  have  short  horns,  and  in  color  they 
vary  from  pure  white  to  a  deep  or  rich  red.  The  most  popular  color  for 
these  animals  in  Scotland  is  a  mixture  of  the  two,  forming  a  deep  or 
light  roan,  sometimes  called  strawberry,  flecked,  or  hazel. 

Shorthorns  are  as  symmetrical  as  the  Polled  Angus,  and  grow  about 
the  same  weight.  They  arc  hardy  and  arrive  at  maturity  early  ;  but, 
like  the  Polled  Angus,  they  are  principally  noted  as  beef  cattle.  For  the 
dairy  they  are  not  equal  to  some  other  breeds  in  Scotland.  The  first 
improvers  of  Shorthorns  were  the  brothers  Charles  and  Eobert  Colling, 
who  commenced  improving  these  cattle  nearly  a  century  ago;  also  Mr. 
Bates,  Mr.  Booth,  and  others,  all  in  the  northern  counties  of  England. 

OFFSPRING  OF  IMPORTED  CATTLE. 

The  Departmental  circular  says : 

It  is  further  believed  that  the  imported  breeds,  when  suitably  located  and  managed, 
produce  in  their  new  homes  offspring  superior  to  that  produced  by  the  same  breeds 
in  their  original  homes,  and  that  the  superiority  is  more  marked  in  their  succeeding 
than  in  the  iirst  generations. 

For  instance,  the  imported  breeds  of  Shorthorns,  Jerseys,  and  Holsteins  are  superior 
in  the  United  States  to  the  same  breeds  in  Europe ;  and  it  is  thought  that  the  same 
result  would  follow  the  importation  of  the  Norman,  Brittany,  Flemish,  and  Charlevoi 
breeds,  as  well  as  others  not  enumerated.  To  what  extent  is  this  result  realized  in 
other  countries  ? 

In  answer  to  this  it  has  to  be  stated  that,  as  Scotland  does  not  im- 
port cattle  to  any  appreciable  extent  for  breeding  purposes,  little  ex- 
perience can  bo  quoted  on  the  point  in  question.  A  few  Shorthorns 
have  been  imported  from  the  United  States  which  were  descended  from 
stock  originally  sent  from  this  country. 

The  breeding  Shorthorns  imported  from  the  United  States  by  Lord 
Dunmore  and  other  noblemen  were  of  considerably  larger  size  than 
animals  of  the  same  lineage  reared  in  Britain.  The  ancestors  of  Short- 
horns had  been  in  the  United  States  for  several  generations  and 
the  superiority  of  their  offspring  imported  to  Britain  over  British-bred 
stock  of  the  same  breed  was  most  marked.  This  would  lead  to  the  in- 
ference that  cattle  grow  to  a  larger  size  in  the  United  States  than  in 
Britain,  the  more  especially  as  the  herds  of  these  noblemen  who  im- 
ported the  cattle  from  the  United  States  contained  many  of  the  largest 
and  best-fed  animals  of  the  breed  in  the  country. 

BEST  METHODS  OF  EXPORTATION  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Scotland  is  well  supplied  with  railroads,  and  the  cattle  can  be  put 
into  special  trucks  and  conveyed  quickly  to  Glasgow,  Liverpool,  or 
London,  where  there  are  facilities  of  the  best  order  for  shipment,  and 
most  suitable  and  convenient  accommodation  for  animals  on  board  the 
large  Atlantic  liners  which  sail  from  these  ports. 


2 14  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

BEST  ROUTES  OF  EXPORT,  AND  COST  THEREOF. 

Per  rail  to  Glasgow,  Liverpool,  or  London,  thence  per  suitable  or 
specially  fitted  up  fast  steamers  to  the  United  States,  The  « through 
freight"  of  cattle  from  most  parts  of  Scotland  to  the  United  States  is 
about  $26  per  head;  from  the  extreme  northeast  of  Scotland,  Aberdeen, 
Banff,  or  Peterheaci,  about  $27.50. 

THE  BEST  SCOTCH   CATTLE   TO  EXPORT. 

The  most  suitable  animals  to  export  to  the  United  States  depends 
on  the  climatic  conditions  of  the  States  to  which  they  are  sent.  As 
beef  producers  the  Polled  Angus,  Shorthorns,  West  Highland,  and  the 
Polled  Galloway  are  the  best  to  export  from  this  district.  The  West 
Highlander's  beef  is  considered  the  best,  and  they  are  the  most  hardy, 
being  able  to  stand  much  exposure  and  therefore  best  adapted  for  cold 
and  mountainous  districts,  being  able  to  live  on  coarse  and  scanty  food. 
They  are,  however,  small,  and  do  not  arrive  at  maturity  till  three  or 
four  years  old.  The  Polled  Angus  rank  next  for  superior  beef,  and  are 
nearly  as  hardy  as  the  West  Highlanders,  and  are  much  larger  in  size 
and  come  to  maturity  at  the  age  of  from  twenty-eight  to  thirty-six 
months.  They  are  principally  bred  and  raised  in  the  northeast  of  Scot- 
land, and  are  believed  to  be  very  suitable  for  the  northern  part  of  the 
United  States  and  western  ranches.  The  Shorthorns  are  very  large, 
and  come  to  maturity  at  about  the  same  age  as  Polled  Angus,  but  their 
beef  is  of  a  coarser  quality. 

The  Polled  Galloway  very  much  resembles  the  West  Highland,  al: 
though  larger,  and  comes  to  maturity  earlier.  The  Aberdeenshire  farm- 
ers, for  beef,  prefer  a  cross  between  a  Shorthorn  bull  and  a  Polled  Angus 
cow,  as  crosses  of  this  origin  arrive  quickly  at  maturity,  are  of  good  size, 
and  produce  beef  of  fine  quality. 

As  milkers  the  Ayrshires  are  undoubtedly  the  best  to  take  from  this 
country. 

PURCHASING  PRICES  OF  ANIMALS. 

Per  head. 

Average  pure  Polled  Angus  cattle $150  to  $300 

Black  Polled  Galloways 100          250 

Shorthorns  125          250 

Ayrshires 75          150 

West  iSghland 75          125 

All,  of  course,  depends  on  quality. 

Very  superior  sepcimeus  of  all  of  the  breeds  mentioned  have  repeat- 
edly been  sold  for  exportation  to  the  United  States  at  considerably 
higher  prices  than  the  average  given,  but  to  obtain  adequate  specimens 
of  the  several  breeds  in  this  district  the  averages  mentioned  would  have 
to  be  given,  although  sales  at  less  prices  have  occasionally  been  made. 

For  expenses  for  attendance  and  food  en  route,  $6.25  for  food  (hay 
and  oil  cake),  and  $1.25  per  head  for  attendance— total,  $7.50— is  consid- 
ered sufficient,  and  with  a  good  number  of  cattle  on  board  the  total 
expense  would  be  about  $6.25.  Some  experienced  United  States  traders 
in  thoroughbred  cattle  are  supposed  to  make  $3.25  cover  the  total 
charges  under  this  head. 

CATTLE  STATISTICS  OF  SCOTLAND. 

The  total  number  of  cattle  in  Scotland  for  the  year  1883  was  1,094,317. 

The  percentage  of  the  several  breeds  is  not  known  from  any  statis- 
tics, but  probably  the  cattle  stock  of  this  district  is  composed  of  three 
parts  of  cross-breeds  and  one  part  of  the  several  pure  breeds. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM  215 

The  percentage  bred  for  the  dairy  about  20  5  for  the  butcher,  about 
80  per  cent. 

Of  late  years  stock  in  Scotland  has  decreased.  Disease  imported  from 
time  to  time  in  live  stock,  causing  farmers  to  cease  from  breeding  cattle, 
has  to  a  great  extent  been  the  cause  of  this  decrease. 

Another  cause  is  to  be  found  in  the  improvement  of  the  cattle,  mak- 
ing them  ready  for  the  butcher  earlier.  And  a  third  cause  is  the  in- 
crease of  population  and  wages,  and  consequent  enhanced  demand  for 
butcher  meat,  which  for  many  years  has  been  sold  for  high  prices  in  the 
Scotch  and  English  markets. 

IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  OF  MEAT  AND  CATTLE. 

The  stock  of  cattle  in  Scotland  is  not  nearly  equal  to  the  consumptive 
demand. 

The  stock  as  shown  is  not  sufficient  for  home  demand,  excepting  ped- 
igreed stock,  which  is  exported  to  the  United  States,  Canada,  Australia, 
New  Zealand,  West  Indies,  and  the  continent  of  Europe. 

The  farmers  who  in  consequence  of  imported  disease  have  ceased  (in 
a  measure),  as  already  mentioned,  to  breed  cattle,  mostly  get  their  sup- 
plies of  feeding-cattle  from  Ireland,  where  a  good  many  are  bred  and 
not  many  fattened. 

Some  cattle  from  the  United  States  and  Canada  have  also  been  fat- 
tened in  Scotland,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  this  latter  trade 
might  not  be  extended  to  the  advantage  of  all  concerned.  But  if  the 
Scotch  farmers  bred  and  fed  cattle  to  the  utmost  of  their  ability  the 
supply  of  fat  cattle  would  still  not  be  nearly  equal  to  the  consumptive 
demand.  The  continent  of  Europe^  United  States  and  Canada  supply 
a  large  proportion  of  the  beef  consumed  in  Scotland  and  there  is  every 
reason  to  expect  that  the  British  demand  for  beef  from  these  countries 
will  continue  to  increase. 

THE  NATURE   OF  THE  IMPORT  SUPPLIES. 

From  the  continent  of  Europe  the  beef  is  mostly  in  its  live  state ; 
from  the  United  States  about  half  the  amount  dead  and  the  other  half 
live.  A  large  quantity  of  tinned  or  canned  meat  is  also  imported  from 
Chicago  and  elsewhere  in  the  United  States.  Some  cargoes  of  frozen 
mutton  have  come  from  Australia  and  New  Zealand  which  appear  to 
have  been  a  success.  This  trade  is  likely  to  increase. 

IMPORTS  FROM  THE   UNITED  STATES. 

A  large  number  of  live  cattle,  fresh  meat  in  refrigerators,  and  tinned 
meat  come  from  the  United  States. 

THE  BEST  MEANS  OF  INCREASING-  THE  EXPORTS  OF  AMERICAN  MEAT. 

If  the  United  States  Government  would  take,  measures  to  extermi- 
nate pleuro-pneumonia  and  to  suppress  any  contagious  diseases  when 
they  appenr,  the  British  Government  would  then  admit  freely  the  im- 
portation of  fat  and  store  cattle,  greatly  to  the  advantage  of  United 
States  producers  and  of  British  farmers  and  consumers.  The  British 
farmers  would  profit  greatly  by  having  a  supply  of  good  store  stock 
from  the  western  plains,  and  fat  stock  would  fetch  a  better  price  if  they 
could  be  moved  from  the  ports  of  landing  to  inland  markets. 


216 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


THE  BEST  MEANS  OF  INCREASING  THE  EXPORTS  OF  AMERICAN  DAIRY 

PRODUCE 

is  to  send  the  best  articles  properly  packed,  quickly  and  carefully  con- 
veyed, and  they  will  then  not  only  command  the  highest  price  in  this 
market  but  the  demand  will  also  increase. 

WILLABD  B.  WELLS, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Dundee,  February  24,  1884. 


Special  statistics  concerning  the  products  of  the  several  breeds  of  cattle  in  Scotland. 


Name  of  breed. 

Annual 
average 
pounds 
of  milk. 

Milk  to 
1  pound 
of 
butter. 

Milk  to 
1  pound 
of 
cheese. 

Live  weight. 

Age  at 
maturity. 

Weight 
of  meat 
at 
maturity. 

Color. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Improved    Polled 
Angus. 
Shorthorns    ....... 

4,000 
4,200 

6,000 
2,500 
2,500 

Lba. 

24 

26 

25J 
24 
24 

Lba. 
10 

10J 

10i 

10 

10 

Lbi. 

1,  200 

1,300 

850 
900 
1,000 

Lbs. 
1,750 

1,875 

1,250 
1,350 
1,500 

Lba. 
1,500 

l.COO 

1,050 
1,150 
1,300 

Yrs. 
8ft 

3J 

4 
5 
5 

Lba. 
1,100 

1,150 

630 
850 
000 

Black. 

Red,  white, 
roan,  and 
brown. 
Various. 
Do. 
Black. 

Ayrshire  .......... 

West  Highland.... 
Polled  Galloway... 

Name  of  breed. 

Description. 

How  long  bred 
puie. 

Origin  of  breed. 

Improved  Polled  Angus  
Shorthorns 

Long,  low,  deep,  wide,  even, 
and  cylindrical  and  pleas- 
ing to  the  eye. 

Formed  same  as  Polled 
Angus,  only  larger. 

(See  description  of  A  y  rshires 
in  report.  ) 
Shaggy-haired,  level    and 
square  made. 
.  do 

80  y 

Fro 
me 
—  c 

305 

ears  

Hugh  Watson    first    im- 
prover.    Hia  coadjutors 
were  Walker,  Ferguson, 
and  Bowie. 
Charles  and   Robert  Col- 
linsr,  Mr.  Booth,  and  Mr. 
Bates. 
Not  known. 

Native  cattle  of  Scotland. 

Rev.  J.  Gillespie,  Mouser- 
wald,  first  improver. 

do  

m  timeim- 
morial. 
lo  

ears  

Ayrshire 

West  Highland  

Polled  Galloway  . 

Name  of  breed. 

Methods  of  housing. 

Feeding. 

Breeding. 

Handling  prod- 
ucts. 

Improved  Polled  Angus  

Housed  in  Novem- 
ber, December, 
January,  F  e  b  - 
ruary,  March,  and 
April.  Pastured 
during  remaining 
months. 

Pasture  jrAss  in 
summer,  turnips 
and  straw  in 
winter;  occa- 
sionally oil-cake 
added. 

From  16  to  24 
months. 

do 

Two  men  at  $250 
each  per  your 
are  required 
for  a  herd  num- 
bering 120. 

Do 

Ayrshire  

the  Polled  Angus. 

nips,  and  oil- 
cake. 

fin 

W^est  Highland 

other  breeds. 

nips,  and  oil- 
c  a  k  e  ;  m  u  c  h 
cooked  food  in 
the  shape  of 
bran,  beaus,  and 
meal. 

per  annum. 

N 

Polled  Galloway  

....do.....  

iner;   .occasion- 
ally straw  and 
turnips  in  win- 
ter. 
....do  

3  years. 
....do  

per  annum. 
Do. 

THE    UNITED   KINGDOM.  217 

Altitude:  In  Scotland  a  high  and  almost  continuous  ridge  of  mountains  run 
from  the  NNW.  to  SSE.  To  the  east  of  this  ridge  of  high  ground  the  rainfall  fa 
comparatively  small,  and  the  climates  of  all  districts  not  exceeding  500  feet  ahove 
the  sea  are  dry  and  suited  for  the  successful  cultivation  of  cereals.  To  the  west  of 
the  ridge  the  rainfall  is  heavy  and  the  climate  moist,  and  therefore  only  adapted  to 
the  rearing  of  such  stock  as  West  Highland  or  Polled  Galloway  cattle. 

Mean  temperature :  The  mean  temperature  of  January,  the  coldest  month,  is  39° 
in  the  west  and  37°  in  the  east.  The  mean  temperature  of  July,  the  warmest  month, 
is  about  64°.  Wheat  and  barley  are  sufficiently  ripened,  although  the  mean  temper- 
ature of  July  and  August  falls  as  low  as  56°. 

Summer:  Summers  have  been  bad  in  Scotland  for  the  last  seven  years,  generally 
cold  and  wet,  with  much  want  of  sun.  The  impression  current  is  that  the  seasons  in 
Scotland  are  not  as  good  as  formerly. 

Winter:  Generally  raw  and  open  in  Scotland,  but  for  some  years  very  wet,  with 
little  frost. 

Soil :  All  of  the  four  varieties  of  soil  above  mentioned  as  well  as  others  prevail  in 
Scotland.  Agricultural  survey  and  surface  mapping  of  this  country  has  been  hith- 
rto  little  studied.  Any  approximation,  therefore,  of  the  relative  proportions  of  the 
various  descriptions  of  soils  would,  it  is  thought,  partake  largely  of  the  character 
of  conjecture. 

Substratum  :  The  underlying  rocks  in  this  district  are  carboniferous,  trap,  old  red, 
and  alluvium. 

Cultivated  grasses:  Clover:  For  1883,  1,502,004  acres.  Rye-grass,  &c :  For  1883, 
4,790,032  acres. 


SCOTCH  BREEDING  CATTLE  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

REPORT  J?F  CONSUL  LEONARD. 

As  a  means  of  obtaining  the  most  reliable  information  regarding  the 
kinds  of  Scotch  breeding  cattle  which  are  likely  to  be  of  use  to  the 
stock-breeders  of  the  United  States,  I  applied  to  William  MacDonald, 
esq.,  editor  of  the  North  British  Agriculturist,  and  he  has  kindly  sup- 
plied me  with  much  of  the  material  that  forms  the  basis  of  this  report. 

Mr.  MacDonald  published  in  the  North  British  Agriculturist  an  edi- 
torial on  the  subject  which  gives  so  fully  and  clearly  the  information 
desired  as  to  breeds  of  cattle  peculiar  to  Scotland  that  I  adopt  it  as 
part  of  my  report  and  give  it  below  without  any  material  addition : 

EDITORIAL  FROM  THE  NORTH  BRITISH  AGRICULTURIST. 

It  is  difficult  to  answer  the  queries  of  the  circular  definitely  or  accurately.  There 
is  a  lack  of  data,  but  approximations  can  and  will  be  given. 

At  once  it  may  be  conceded  that  with  dairying  in  the  forefront  there  is  only  one 
breed  native  of  Scotland  which  can  be  a  great  object  to  the  American.  That,  of 
course,  is  the  beautiful  Ayrshire,  whoso  milking  properties  are  second  to  those  of  no 
ctherrace  when  properly  developed,  and  whose  fattening  qualities,  whendry,  are  aston- 
ishing. In  the  full  flow  of  milk  a  cow  cannot  get  fat ;  but  when  an  Ayrshire  becomes 
yeald  she  is  not  difficult  to  fatten.  This  cannot  bo  said  with  so  much  force  of  the 
rival  dairy  breeds.  An  Ayrshire  steer  is  a  kindly  feeder,  and  becomes  good  beef,  if 
well  kept  throughout,  at  thirty  to  thirty-six  months,  with  a  live  weight  of  from  1,000 
to,  1,200  pounds.  The  breed,  however,  being  in  such  a  pronounced  manner  a  dairy 
one,  the  number  of  pure  Ayrshire  oxen  is  not  large ;  nor  does  the  breed  claim  to  rank 
high  as  beef-makers,  though  meat  of  pretty  good  quality  is  easily  produced  by  Ayr- 
shires  even  after  they  have  served  their  time  at  the  pail.  Records  of  milking  tests 
with  Ayrshires  should  satisfy  Americans  that,  keeping  in  view  their  tendency  to  lay 
on  flesh  when  dry,  there  is  no  breed  preferable  to  it  where  dairying  is  the  main  object, 
and  few,  if  any,  so  good. 

The  average  annual  yield  of  milk  per  cow  of  the  Ayrshire  breed  is  fully  600  gallons. 
Of  course,  some  animals  produce  far  more  than  that,  but  others  are  less.  The  return 


218  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

of  butter  per  cow  annually  has  been  estimated  at  about  250  pounds,  and  of  cheese 
rather  over  500  pounds. 

With  the  Polled  Aberdeen-Angus,  the  Polled  Galloway,  and  the  West  Highland 
breeds  there  have  not  been  any  reliable  or  exhaustive  milking  tests.  Those  breeds  are 
reared  chiefly  for  beef-making  purposes;  but  many  animals,  especially  of  the  Polled 
description,  are  fine  milkers.  The  three  breeds  excel  in  respect  of  the  richness  of  their 
milk,  but  comparative  analyses  on  this  point  are  wanting. 

The  Aberdeen-Angus,  taken  as  a  whole,  cannot  claim  to  be  more  than  fair-milkers. 
A  few  cows  in  almost  every  large  herd,  in  yield  of  milk,  make  a  decent  approach  to 
an  Ayrshire — producing  between  500  and  600  gallons  per  annum.  A  considerable 
number,  however,  notably  where  the  animals  have  been  fed  hard,  as  heifers,  would 
not  reach  more  than  half  that  quantity.  In  these  circumstances,  it  is  doubtful  if  the 
average  would  be  quite  400  gallons  per  cow  annually.  But  when  you  come  to  the 
production  of  beef  this  breed  stands  second  to  none.  Indeed,  if  early  maturity  is 
combined  with  the  quality  of  the  meat,  it  is  probably  not  too  much  to  say  that  the- 
Aberdeen-Angus  has  no  equal  as  a  butcher's  beast  among  the  pure  breeds  in  this  or 
any  country.  They  "die"  remarkably  well;  that  is  to  say,  they  accumulate  a  con- 
siderable quantity  of  fat  and  tallow  internally.  Then  the  wealth  and  texture  of  flesh 
are  superb. 

The  weight  at  maturity  varies  a  good  deal.  Picked  bulls  or  oxen  fattened  hard  for 
exhibition  scale  occasionally  as  much  as  2,700  pounds,  and  we  have  seen  females  of 
the  breed  exceed  2,000  pounds.  A  good  average  live  weight  for  cows  of  the  breed,  as 
they  go  to  the  butcher,  is  from  1,200  to  1,400  pounds.  Bulls  generally  range  from 
1,600  to  1,800  pounds.  Oxen  not  intended  for  competition  in  the  show-yard,  but  lib- 
erally fed  throughout,  will  go  to  the  butcher  at  the  age  of  thirty  to  thirty-six  months 
weighing  from  1,500  to  1,700  pounds.  The  great  value  of  the  Aberdeen- Angus  in  a 
country  like  America  is  its  potency  in  crossing  with  the  rougher  native  breeds.  It 
lends  flesh  and  quality  to  the  lanky,  somewhat  sharp-topped,  ordinary  ranch  variety. 

The  Galloway,  like  the  Northern  Polled,  is  a  very  old  breed.  It  has  not  the  credit 
of  maturing  quite  so  early  as  the  other  polled  breed,  at  least  it  seldom  gets  the  chance. 
It  is  as  large  in  frame  as  the  Aberdeen- Angus,  but,  as  a  rule,  it  is  not  fattened  to  such 
an  extent;  consequently,  the  recorded  weights  are  rather  less  for  the  Galloway.  The 
dairying  properties  of  the  Galloway  are  not  high,  though  many  cows  of  the  breed  are 
really  good  at  the  pail,  and  the  quality  of  the  milk  ia  excellent.  An  American  critic 
recently  said  that  the  Galloway  beat  the  Aberdeen-Angus  in  the  production  of  oxtail 
soup.  That  may  be,  but  the  breed  has  greater  merits  than  that.  It  is  exceptionally 
hardy,  carries  a  great  quantity  of  very  tine  flesh,  and  is  admirably  adapted  for  a  wet 
cliojate  and  high  exposed  country.  Galloways  have  never  been  so  well  protected 
from  cold  in  winter  nor  quite  so  generously  fed  as  the  Aberdeen- Angus  have  long  been 
and  are.  Galloways  are  so  hardy  and  so  much  accustomed  to  exposure  that  they 
should  be  eminently  suited  for  ranching  on  the  great  Western  prairies.  They  cross 
successfully  with  other  meat-producing  breeds  ;  a  cross  between  a  Galloway  cow  and 
Shorthorn  bull,  for  instance,  has  long  been  a  favorite  butcher's  beast  in  the  border 
counties,  and  commands,  when  well  finished,  as  high  prices  as  the  oft-quoted  "prime 
Scot"  in  the  Southern  markets.  Next  to  the  West  Highland,  the  Galloway  breed  is 
probably  the  hardiest  in  Britain. 

The  West  Highland  breed  is  comparatively  unknown  in  America.  A  few  specimens, 
however,  have  lately  been  sent  out,  and  wo  hope  more  will  follow.  Being  horned, 
and  sometimes  nervous,  or  vicious  even,  they  are  not  so  easily  handled  as  the  Polled 
breeds  or  as  the  Shorthorns,  but  their  unrivaled  hardiness  and  rare  quality  of  flesh 
would  be  of  service  on  the  American  ranch.  Their  beef  is  of  the  richest  and  most 
palatable  nature,  and  their  shapes  and  character  are  grand  and  pronounced.  They 
would,  by  judicious  mating,  reduce  the  "daylight"  and  tone  down  the  "  timber"  of 
the  Texan  or  Western  varieties.  Many  of  the  Highlanders  are  never  under  cover, 
summer  nor  winter,  and  the  death-rate  is  astonishingly  small.  The  West  Highlander 
will  not  milk,  mature,  nor  weigh  with  the  Scotch  Polled.  The  milk,  however,  though 
short  in  quantity,  is  believed  to  be  the  richest  of  its  kind  in  the  Kingdom  ;  the  beef 
has  the  finest  of  flavors,  and  is  beautifully  mixed.  They  are  not  usually  matured  till 
about  four  years  old,  but  their  ripening  properties  have  not  been  fully  tested.  They 
are  fed  on  more  scanty  herbage  than  any  other  British  breed  of  cattle.  If  West 
Highlanders  were  fed  generously  from  calf  hood  they  would,  as  a  rule,  be  perfectly 
ripe  at  the  age  of  three  years,  if  not  before. 

SPECIAL  STATISTICS  CONCERNING  SCOTCH  BREEDS. 

The  following  information  is  supplied  to  assist  in  properly  locating 
under  similar  conditions  in  the  United  States  such  foreign  animals  as 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM. 


219 


have  proved  by  long  experience  to  have  been  profitable  in  their  native 
homes: 


Name  of  breed. 


Annual 

average 

gallons  of 

milk. 


Milk  to  1 
pound  of 
butter. 


Milk  to  1 
pound of 
cheese. 


Live  weight. 


Cow. 


Bull. 


Ox. 


Ago  at 
maturity 


Weight 
of  meat  at 
maturity. 


Polled  Aberdeen  Angus 

Polled  Galloway 

West  Highland 

Ayrshire 


400 
380 
330 
GOO 


Galls. 


Galls. 


Lbs. 
1,300 
1,250 
1,050 
900 


Lbs.  Lbs. 
1,700  1,600 
1,  650  1,  550 
1, 400  1,  250 
1, 150  II,  050 


Trs. 


Lbs. 


900 
850 
720 
620 


Name  of  breed. 


Color. 


Description. 


How 

long  bred 
pure. 


Origis 
breed. 


Polled  Aberdeen  Angus 

Polled  Galloway 

West  Highland 


Black. 


Ayrshire 


....do 


Black,  red, 
dun.  yel- 
low, brin- 
dled. 


Black  and 
white,  red 
and  white, 
brindled. 


Long  deep  body  on  short  legs ; 
the  finest  of  beef;  rich  flesh 
on  small  bone ;  glossy  coat ; 
best  of  beef  producers,  and 
fairly  hardy. 

Long  'haired,  deep  framed, 
wealthy  fleshed,  strong  bone, 
very  hardy;  suitable  for 
wintering  outside. 

Long  horns,  long  hair,  short 
legs,  deep  ribs,  good  out- 
line, somewhat  narrow 
frame,  great  length,  hard- 
iest British  breed,  winter 
outside. 

Short  upstanding  horns, 
sharp  hind  quarters,  broad 
ribs,  smooth  skin ;  best 
dairy  breed  in  Scotland,  if 
not  in  Great  Britain. 


Nearly  a  cen- 
tury. 


Over  a  cen- 
tury. 


Time  imme- 
morial. 


For  genera- 
tions. 


The     old 

Scotch  cat- 
tle. 


Scotch  races. 


Obscure. 


Uncertain. 


Product. 


Name  of  breed. 


Labor. 


Milk. 


Cheese. 


Polled  Aberdeen  Angus  . . . 

Polled  Galloway 

West  Highland 

Ayrshire , 


Good 

Fair 

Untractablo  .. 
Scarcely  used. 


The  finest  grained.. 
E  xcellent  rich  flavor. 

Finest  flavor 

Fair  quality 


Rich ;... 

Good  quality 

Rich  but  small 

Great  in  quantity 

and  of  fair  qual- 

ity. 


Fair. 

Good  quality. 

Fine. 

Good. 


NOTE.— Animals  fattened  hard  from  youth  for  exhibition  of  the  Polled  and  West  Highland  breeds 
arrive  earlier  at  maturity  than  is  indicated  above,  and  attain  greater  weights,  but  the  estimates  given 
are  about  average.  Cows  fed  on  bean-meal  or  other  special  food  \vill  give  larger  returns  in  milk,  but- 
ter, and  cheese  than  the  above. 

In  supplement  to  the  foregoing  tabular  matter,  I  subjoin  further  in- 
formation relative  to  the  Polled  Galloway  and  Ayrshire  cattle  which, 
may  be  deemed  of  interest. 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  A  TYPICAL  GALLOWAY. 

I  quote  from  a  pamphlet  published  by  the  Eev.  John  Gillespie,  M.  A., 
editor  of  the  Galloway  Herd-Book  of  Great  Britain  (to  whom  I  am  in- 
debted for  other  information  contained  in  this  report),  as  follows: 

Statement  of  the  characteristics  of  a  typical  animal  of  the  Galloway  breed. 
[Drawn  up  by  the  council  of  the  Galloway  Society  of  Groat  Britain,  18th  April,  1883.  j 

Color :  Black,  with  a  brownish  tinge. 

Head :  Short  and  wide,  with  broad  forehead  and  wide  nostrils ;  without  the  slight- 
est symptoms  of  horns  or  scnrs. 


220  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Eye :  Large  and  prominent. 

Ear :  Moderate  in  length  and  broad,  pointing  forwards  and  upwards,  with  fringe 
of  long  hairs. 

Neck:  Moderate  in  length,  clean,  and  filling  well  into  the  shoulders;  the  top  in  a 
line  with  the  back  in  a  female,  and  in  a  male  naturally  rising  with  ago. 

BODY.— Deep,  rounded,  and  symmetrical.  Shouldws  :  Fine  and  straight,  moder- 
ately wide  above;  coarse  shoulder  points  and  siiarp  or  high  shoulders  are  objection- 
able. Hreast:  Full  and  deep.  Back  and  rump:  Straight.  Ribs  :  Deep  and  well 
sprung.  Loin  and  sirloin :  Well  filled.  Hook  bones  :  Not  prominent.  Hindquarters: 
Long,  moderately  wide,  and  well  filled.  Flank:  Deep  and  full.  Thif/hs :  Broad, 
straight,  and  well  let  down  to  hock  ;  rounded  buttocks  are  very  objectionable.  Leys  : 
Short  and  clean,  with  fine  bone.  Tail:  Well  sst  on.  and  moderately  thick.  Skin: 
Mellow  and  moderately  thick. 

Hair :  Soft  and  wavy,  with  mossy  undercoat ;  wiry  or  curly  hair  is  very  objec- 
tionable. 

CHARACTERISTIC  POINTS  OF  AYRSHIRE   CATTLE. 

• 

The  second  article  is  quoted  from  the  report  of  a  committee  of  the 
Ayrshire  Agricultural  Society  appointed  to  revise  the  points  indicating 
excellence  in  the  Ayrshire  breed  of  cattle,  as  follows : 

Proposed  ratio  scale  of  points  of  excellence  in  Ayrshire  cattle. 

Points. 

(1)  Head  short,  forehead  wide,  nose  fine  between  the  muzzle  and  eyes,  muzzle 

large,  eyes  full  and  lively,  horns  wide  set  on,  inclining  upwards 10 

(2)  Neck  moderately  long,  and  straight  from  the  head  to  the  top  of  the  shoul- 

der, free  from  loose  skin  on  the  under  side,  fine  at  its  junction  with  the 
head,  and  enlarging  symmetrically  towards  the  shoulders 5 

(3)  Fore  quarters:  Shoulders  sloping,  withers  fine,  chest  sufficiently  broad  and 

deep  to  insure  constitution,  brisket  and  whole  fore  quarters  light,  the  cow 
gradually  increasing  in  depth  and  width  backwards 5 

(4)  Back  short  and  straight,  spine  well  defined,  especially  at  the  shoulders, 

short  ribs  arched,  the  body  deep  at  the  flanks 10 

(5)  Hind  quarters  long,  broad,  and  straight;  hook  bones  wide  apart,  and  not 

overlaid  with  fat;  thighs  deep  and  broad ;  tail  long,  slender,  and  set  on 
level  with  the  back 9 

(6)  Udder  capacious  and  not  fleshy,  hinder  part  broad  and  firmly  attached  to 

the  body,  the  sole  nearly  level  and  extending  well  forward,  milk  veins 
about  udder  and  abdomen  well  developed.  The  teats  from  2  to  2£  inches 
in  length,  equal  in  thickness,  the  thickness  being  in  proportion  to  the 
length,  hanging  perpendicularly ;  their  distance  apart  at  the  sides  should 
be  equal  to  about  one-third  of  the  length  of  the  vessel,  and  across  to  about 
one-half  of  the  breadth 33 

(7)  Legs  short  in  proportion  to  size,  the  bones  fine,  the  joints  firm 3 

(8)  Skin  soft  and  elastic,  and  covered  with  soft,  close,  woolly  hair 5 

(9)  Color  red,  of  any  shade,  brown  or  white,  or  a  mixture  of  these,  each  color 

being  distinctly  defined.    Brindle  or  black  and  white  is  not  in  favor  . . . 

(10)  Average  live  weight,  in  full  milk,  about  10£  cwt 

(11)  General  appearance,  including  style  and  movement..... 10 

Perfection 100 

JOHN  LORNE  STEWART  (OF  COLL), 

Convene?'  of  Committee. 

At  the  annual  general  meeting  of  19th  February,  1884,  the  above  report  was  adopted, 
and  ordered  to  be  printed  and  circulated  amongst  the  members  and  others. 

JAMES  McMURTRIE, 

Secretary, 

METHODS  OF  HOUSING  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

Polled  Aberdeen  Angus. — Grazing  in  summer.  Stalls  or  partially  cov- 
ered courts  in  winter. 

Polled  Galloway. — Grazing  in  summer.  Wintered  mostly  in  open  air, 
and  partially  in  court-yards. 


THE   UNITED   KINGDOM.  221 

West  Highland. — Outside  through  summer  and  winter.  Supplied  with 
hay  and  some  turnips  during  severe  snow  storm  or  frost. 

Ayrshire.— Grazing  in  summer.  Kept  mostly  in  byres  during  winter, 
with  runs  out  in  open  weather. 

FEEDING  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

There  is  very  little  cake  or  purchased  food  fed  to  any  of  the  breeds, 
excepting  for  animals  intended  for  exhibition,  or  during  the  last  few 
months  of  preparation  for  the  butcher. 

Bather  more  extra  feeding  is  supplied  to  the  Aberdeen  Angus  than  to 
the  other  breeds,  especially  in  the  case  of  high-bred  pedigree  stocks. 

BREEDING  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

In  the  select  pedigree  herd  bulls  are  kept  in  the  house,  and  the  females 
are  brought  to  them  at  the  discretion  of  the  owners,  having  scrupulous 
regard  to  the  relationship  and  corresponding  features  of  the  animals. 

In  general  commercial  stocks,  or  breeding  for  the  butcher,  it  is  quite 
common  in  the  case  of  Galloway,  Highland,  or  Ayrshire  cattle,  to  al- 
low a  bull  to  graze  regularly  in  a  park  with  twenty  to  thirty  females. 

HANDLING  PRODUCTS. 

As  regards  dairy  produce,  that  obtained  from  the  Galloways  aud  Ayr- 
shires  is  largely  made  into  cheese,  the  remainder  being  chiefly  disposed 
of  in  sweet  milk  to  the  large  towns  by  rail  and  milk-carts. 

The  Polled  Angus  and  Highland  inmost  cases  foster  their  own  calves 
and  supply  milk  for  the  necessities  of  the  various  holdings. 

A  great  many  of  the  Ayrshire  cows'  calves  are  sent  at  once  to  the 
butcher,  while  others  are  fattened  at  the  age  of  a  month  or  two  as  veal, 
but  the  calves  of  the  other  three  breeds  are,  as  a  rule,  brought  to  ma- 
turity at  the  various  ages  indicated  in  the  foregoing  table. 

TOPOGRAPHY  OF  SCOTLAND. 

With  reference  to  the  questions  of  altitude  and  temperature  indicated 
on  the  schedule  accompanying  the  cattle  circular^  I  may  briefly  state 
that  Scotland  has  been  aptly  defined  as  "a  great  plateau,  deeply  cut 
into  valleys  and  having  mountains  rising  to  2,000  or  3,000,  and  occa- 
sionally even  4,000,  feet  of  elevation."  The  climate  is  exceedingly  va- 
riable. From  its  insular  position,  however,  the  cold  in  winter  is  not  so 
intense  nor  the  heat  in  summer  so  great  as  in  corresponding  latitudes 
in  the  United  States  or  on  the  continent  of  Europe. 

The  temperature,  except  in  moorlands  in  the  interior  and  the  more 
mountainous  districts,  seldom  remains  long  at  the  freezing  point,  nor 
in  any  part  of  the  country  does  it  often  rise  to  an  intensity  incommod- 
ing the  labor  of  the  field.  The  ordinary  greatest  range  of  the  ther- 
mometer is  between  84°  and  8°. 

While  the  average  temperature  generally  may  be  held  to  range  be- 
tween 45°  and  47°,  it  is  noteworthy  that  it  does  not  descend  as  the  ob- 
server moves  northward,  or  to  the  vicinity  or  into  the  interior  of  the 
Highlands. 

The  mean  temperature  of  Scotland,  noted  at  fifty-five  stations,  alti- 
tude 25G  feet,  during  the  year  1883,  was  45°  9',  and  the  mean  tempera- 
ture of  the  city  of  Edinburgh  with  an  altitude  of  260  feet,  for  the  same 
period,  was  46°  9'. 


222  CATTLE   AND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

As  to  the  proportions  in  which  the  various  soils  are  distributed 
throughout  Scotland,  I  find  it  stated  in  a  work  of  reference  which,  al- 
though published  some  years  ago,  is  still  valuable  in  many  respects  as 
an  authority,  that — 

English  acres. 

The  loams  amount  to 1,869,193 

Rich  clays 987,070 

Gravelly  soils 681,862 

Cord  or  inferior  clays 510,265 

Improved  mossy  soils « 411,096 

Alluvial  haugh  or  c arse  land , 320,193 

Sandy  soils.... 263,771 

Total  cultivated  land,  probably 5,043,450 

Total  uncultivated  land 13,900,550 


Total  area 18,944,000 

or  29,600  square  miles.  Of  this  area  about  4,000  square  miles  belong 
to  the  islands. 

According  to  the  agricultural  returns  recently  published,  I  find  that 
the  cultivated  area  of  Scotland  is  now  estimated  to  be  about  4,800,000 
acres. 

Eegarding  the  questions  of  soil  and  substratum  and  their  conjoint 
relation  to  the  cattle  and  the  natural  feeding  products  of  a  district,  I 
would  take  the  district  of  Aberdeenshire  and  Banffshire  as  the  best 
type  in  Scotland.  The  cattle  from  that  part  of  Scotland  command  the 
highest  price  in  the  London  markets,  partly  due  to  the  breed  and  partly 
to  the  natural  feeding  facilities  possessed.  More  than  one-half  of  the 
area  is  occupied  by  granite,  generally  in  a  decomposed  state.  This 
decomposed  granite,  being  rich  in  alkalies  (potash  and  soda),  from  the 
decomposition  of  the  feldspars  and  mica,  forms  a  soil  to  which  only  a 
proportion  of  phosphate  requires  to  be  added  as  an  artificial  manure 
to  raise  the  best  turnip  crop  in  Scotland.  The  high  feeding  powers  of 
these  turnips,  along  with  the  natural  clover  that  grows  freely  all  over 
the  shire,  enable  the  Aberdeenshire  farmers  to  turn  out  the  best-fed 
cattle  in  the  market. 

EXPORT  AND  PRICES  OF  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

In  reply  to  the  memoranda  accompanying  cattle  circular  I  have  to 
state  as  follows : 

The  best  method  of  exportation  to  the  United  States  is  by  regular 
cattle-carrying  steamers. 

The  best  animals  to  export  are  Polled  Angus,  Polled  Galloway,  Short- 
horns, and  Herefords. 

The  best  routes  of  export  and  cost  thereof  are  from  London,  Liver- 
pool,  and  Glasgow,  on  an  average  of  $17  to  $24. 

The  purchasing  prices  of  the  animals  are,  for  good  class  yearlings : 
Polled  Aberdeen  or  Angus,  £30  ($146)  to  £50  ($243.33).  But  individual 
specimens  of  the  choicer  pedigreed  Aberdeen  or  Angus  have  realized 
over  500  guineas  ($2,554.91).  Galloways,  £25  ($121.66)  to  £40  (8194.66), 
while  choice  pedigreed  specimens  of  the  Galloway  breed  have  likewise 
fetched  long  prices.  West  Highland,  £15  ($73)  to  £20  ($97.33) :  Ayr- 
shire, £20  ($97.33)  to  £25  ($121.66). 

The  estimated  expense  for  attendance  and  food  en  route  is  about  £1 
($4.86)  a  head,  if  ten  or  more  go. 

DISTRIBUTION  OF  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

Throughout  Scotland  Shorthorns  are  more  generally  distributed  than 
any  of  the  four  distinct  breeds  peculiar  to  the  countrv.  but  these  latter 


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THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  223 

cover  the  ground  they  belong  to  more  closely.  The  Galloways  and  Ayr- 
shires  may  be  said  to  completely  cover  the  southwest  of  Scotland  from 
Stirling  and  Dumbarton  to  Wigton.  The  West  Highland  cattle  occupy 
the  northwestern  counties,  and  the  Polled  Aberdeen  Angus  with  Short- 
horns, the  northeastern  counties.  Shorthorns  are  more  numerous  in 
the  northeastern  counties  (in  the  Polled  Aberdeen  district)  and  they 
extend  to  the  southeastern  counties. 

BREEDING  FOR  DAIRY  AND  BUTCHER. 

About  15  per  cent,  of  the  cattle  in  Scotland  are  bred  for  the  dairy  and 
about  85  per  cent,  for  the  butcher. 

NUMBER   OF   CATTLE   IN   SCOTLAND. 

With  respect  to  increase  or  decrease  of  stock  in  this  country,  I  may 
state  that  according  to  the  board  of  trade  returns,  collected  on  5th 
June,  1883,  the  number  of  cattle  of  all  ages  in  Scotland  was  1,094,317. 
This  is  a  slight  increase  on  the  figures  for  1882,  but  less  than  the  num- 
ber returned  for  1872,  as  thus  shown  : 

1872 1,120,593 

1878 1,095,387 

1882 1.081,246 

1883 i;  094, 317 

Nevertheless,  there  was  a  slight  increase  during  same  time  in  En- 
gland and  Wales,  making  the  total  for  Great  Britain  rather  more  in 
1883  than  in  1872. 

IMPORTS   OF   CATTLE   INTO   GREAT  BRITAIN. 

England  and  Scotland  are  largely  dependent  on  foreign  supplies  of 
cattle.  The  needed  supplies  are  obtained  thus  : 

From  the  United  States:  Large  numbers  weekly  of  fat  cattle,  gener- 
ally of  the  best  quality.  These  have  to  be  slaughtered  at  the  port  of 
debarkation  ;  also  a  very  large  quantity  of  killed  meat. 

From  Ireland :  Heavy  weekly  supplies  of  fat,  and,  in  the  season,  large 
numbers  of  store  cattle. 

Spain  and  Portugal :  About  25,000  to  30,000  head  of  good  class  fat 
cattle  weekly. 

The  northern  countries  of  Europe,:  Grqss  number  about  5,000  cattle 
weekly. 

Kussia :  A  considerable  and  increasing  trade  in  dead  meat, 

Canada :  Gross  number  about  60,000  cattle,  of  which  probably  10,000 
to  15,000  bought  by  farmers  to  feed. 

PORTRAITS  OF  REPRESENTATIVE  SCOTCH  CATTLE. 

In  accordance  with  requirement  expressed  in  the  memoranda  above 
referred  to,  I  have  secured  portraits  of  representative  cattle  of  the  sev- 
eral breeds,  and  send  them  herewith.  The  list  of  portraits  is  as  follows  : 

POLLED  ABERDEEN  OR  ANGUS  (by  favor  of  George  J.  Walker,  esq.,  Portlethen,  Aber- 
deen) : 

(1)  Bull.     Sir  Maurice  (1319). 

(2)  Cow.     Juno  (3374). 

(3)  Cow.     Sybil,  second  of  Tillyfour  (3:;26)  and  her  heifer  calf  Sappho  Sybil 

(5020). 
POLLED  GALLOWAY  (by  favor  of  Rev.  John  Gillespie,  M.D.,  Mouswald,  Dumfries): 


224  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

(4)  Bull.     Harden  (1151),  from  oil  painting  by  Gouday  Steel,  animal  painter  to 

the  Highland  and  Agricultural  Society). 

(5)  Cow.     Clara  (1375). 

(6)  Heifer.      Lalla  Rookh  (2142). 

WEST  HIGHLAND  (by  favor  of  John  Robertson,  esq.,  Old  Blair,  Bleir  Athole): 

(7)  Bull.     Photographed  from  one  of  the  Duke  of  Athole's  herd. 

(8)  Cow.    Photographed  from  one  of  the  Duke  of  Athole's  herd. 
AYKSHIRE  (by  favor  of  James  McMurtrie,  esq,  Ayr.) : 

(9)*Bnll.    Baron  O'Bueklyire  (281)  at  four  years. 
(10)*Cow.     Bright  Smile  (1307)  at  four  years. 

Those  portraits  are  not  uniform  and  do  not  indicate  the  size  of  each 
animal  relatively  to  the  others,  but  I  believe  the  relative  size  of  each 
animal  can  be  estimated  by  reference  to  the  tabular  matter  in  this  re- 
port. 

Besides  the  gentlemen  whom  I  have  named  as  having  aided  me  with 
materials  for  this  report,  I  am  indebted  for  much  of  the  information 
contained  in  it  to  Messrs.  John  Swan  &  Sons,  the  eminent  cattle  agents 
of  Edinburgh  and  Glasgow. 

J.  A.  LEONARD, 
Consul- General  (lately  Consul  at  Leith). 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE-GENERAL, 

Calcutta,  July  18,  1884. 


CATTLE  IN  IRELAND. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  PIATT,  OF  QUEENSTOWN. 
RAVAGES  OF  THE  FOOT  AND  MOUTH  DISEASE. 

Since  receiving  cattle  circular  many  letters  of  inquiry  addressed  to 
persons  presumed  to  have  the  best  and  fullest  knowledge  upon  the  sub- 
ject of  breeding  cattle  in  my  district  have  been  written,  the  answers  to 
which  have  been  few  and  far  between  as  well  as  meager.  The  follow- 
ing statement  is  made  up  of  information  thus  received  supplemented 
by  personal  inquiries  which  I  have  caused  to  be  made : 

During  the  past  year  several  districts  in  Ireland  have  suffered  very 
severely,  owing  to  the  introduction  of  foot  and  mouth  disease  from  Eng- 
land. With  a  View  to  checking  its  spread  and  ultimately  "stamping 
out"  the  disease,  very  stringent  restrictions  were  placed  upon  the  cattle 
trade  of  the  entire  island  by  thg  veterinary  department  of  the  privy 
council.  Fairs  and  markets  were  prohibited  in  many  parts  of  Ireland, 
and  several  of  the  most  important  shipping  ports  were  closed  against 
exporters.  In  order  to  secure  open  ports  in  England  and  Scotland  for 
Irish  cattle  it  became  necessary  to  have  cordons  drawn  around  the  uu- 
infected  districts  in  Ireland,  and  no  cattle  were  permitted  to  be  shipped 
from  districts  outside  those  embraced  by  these  cordons.  Even  cattle 
inside  the  cordons  could  only  be  shipped  on  the  production  of  a  certifi- 
cate from  the  clerks  of  the  poor-law  unions,  who  had  means  at  hand  for 
satisfying  themselves  that  no  infected  cattle  were  permitted  to  leave 
Irish  ports.  By  this  arrangement,  and  owing  to  these  very  crushing 
restrictions,  the  important  stock-breeding  province  of  Connaught  was 
for  a  time  completely  suppressed,  all  sales  of  cattle  being  prohibited  ex- 
cept by  special  license  of  the  lord  lieutenant,  or  else  by  means  of  an  ap- 
plication to  the  clerk  of  the  local  authority  or  a  justice  of  the  peace. 

*  For  portraits  of  Ayrshire  cattle  see  report  of  Consul  Wells,  of  Dundee. 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  225 

No  oider  like  this  has  ever  before  been  issued  iii  Ireland,  and  the  effect 
of  the  mandate  upon  small  stock-breeders  must  prove  almost  ruinous. 
Some  idea  of  the  disastrous  effect  of  these  restrictions  upon  the  cattle 
trade  of  the  entire  country  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  it  is  in 
this  same  province  of  Connaught  that  the  largest  and  most  important 
cattle  fair  held  in  Ireland  takes  place.  The  fair  referred  to  is  that  an- 
nually held  in  Ballinasloe,  and  which  is  always  attended  by  large  num- 
bers of  stock-breeders  from  the  other  three  provinces,  viz,  Munster, 
Leinster,  and  Ulster,  in  search  of  young  stock  for  fattening  purposes. 
The  stopping  of  the  source  from  which  these  young  stock  were  obtained 
cannot  but  have  a  very  damaging  effect  on  the  entire  cattle  trade  of  the 
country. 

THE  CATTLE  TRADE  OF  IRELAND. 

The  cattle  trade  of  Ireland  is  undoubtedly  its  greatest  and  most  flour- 
ishing industry,  surpassing  as  it  does  by  several  millions  of  pounds  ster- 
ling annually  the  very  important  and  prosperous  linen  trade  of  the 
northern  province  (Ulster).  For  several  years  past  Irish  stock-breeders 
have  been  receiving  from  England  and  Scotland  in  exchange  for  live 
stock  an  annual  average  of  $73,000,000.  The  returns  for  the  year  just 
closed  have  not  yet  been  made  out,  but  it  is  anticipated  that  they  will 
prove  the  most  depressing  on  record,  and  on  a  rough  estimate  the  sum 
realized  it  is  not  expected  will  exceed  £8,000,000  or  £10,000,000.  In 
the  year  1882  there  were  exported  from  Ireland  to  Great  Britain  291,777 
fat  cattle,  430,000  "stores"  (lean  cattle),  and  of  other  descriptions 3,000, 
or  a  total  of  724,777.  During  1883  not  more  than  half  this  number  have 
been  exported, owing  to  the  restrictions  above  referred  to.  For  four 
out  of  the  twelve  months  the  export  of  "  store"  cattle  from  Ireland  to 
England  was  prohibited  altogether,  and  for  seven  months  of  the  year 
the  restrictions  of  a  general  character  were  so  great  as  to  almost  extin- 
guish the  cattle  trade  in  some  portions  of  the  island.  The  precautions 
adopted  by  the  veterinary  department,  however,  are  having  the  desired 
effect ;  the  spread  of  the  disease  has  been  checked,  and  its  ravages 
have  now  been  u  stamped  out"  of  some  districts.  In  proportion  as  these 
good  results  are  being  realized  the  restrictions  are  being  removed ;  but, 
though  a  considerable  improvement  has  taken  place,  the  cattle  trade  of 
the  country  is  still  very  much  crippled,  and  it  will  take  some  time  be- 
fore it  recovers  the  serious  check  which  it  has  sustained. 

In  connection  with  this  part  of  the  subject  it  will  be  of  interest  to 
draw  a  comparison  between  the  prices  which  cattle  brought  in  1872  and 
1883  at  Ballinasloe  fair.  In  1872  first-class  oxen  (mixed  breeds)  real- 
ized £24  10s.  ($119.22)  per  head.  In  1875  the  same  class  brought  £25 
10s.  ($124.09)  per  head,  while  last  year  these  quotations  fell  to  £20  10s. 
($99.76),  and  as  low  as  £13  ($63.26)  per  head  for  fourth-class  animals. 
In  1872  first-class  heifers  sold  at  £20  ($97.33),  and  last  year  they  brought 
£22  ($107.06);  the  quotations  for  fourth-class  animals  being  £14  ($68.13). 

CATTLE  CENSUS  OF  IRELAND. 

The  total  number  of  cattle  of  all  classes  and  breeds  in  Ireland  in  1883 
was  4,096,021,  an  increase  of  108,810  over  1882.  Of  this  number  there 
were  in  Leinster  1,066,502,  increase  35,330 ;  in  Ulster  1,078,049,  increase 
24,221 ;  in  Connaught  623,997,  increase  10,815 ;  and  in  Munster  1,327,473, 
increase  38,444. 

The  table  which  I  inclose  will  show  the  number  and  description  of 
cattle  in  each  county  of  Muuster  (in  which  province  this  consulate  has 
H.  Ex.  51 15 


226  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

its  jurisdiction)  during  the  years  1882  and  1883.  Of  the  different  breeds 
comprised  in  this  return  it  is  impossible  to  give  the  proportions,  though 
cattle  of  mixed  breeds  largely  predominate. 

GENERAL  INFORMATION  CONCERNING-  CATTLE  IN  IRELAND. 

I  return  herewith  the  printed  form  which  accompanied  circular  of 
July  18,  1883,  with  the  blanks  filled  so  far  as  1  have  been  able  to 
obtain  the  requisite  data.  Dr.  William  K.  Sullivan,  president  of  the 
Queen's  College,  Cork,  who  is  considered  the  first  authority  on  the  sub- 
ject of  inquiry  in  Southern  Ireland,  and  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  the 
principal  topographical  and  scientific  facts  (including  the  list  of  grasses), 
remarks  in  sending  the  same  to  ine : 

Our  farmers  are  so  little  accustomed  to  such  numerical  and  accurate  details  tliat  I 
assure  you  it  is  very  difficult  to  give  such  information.  The  details  about  the  breeds 
of  cattle  have  been  given  by  Mr.  James  Byrne,  J.  P.,"Wattstown  Castle,  Shanbally- 
more,  County  Cork,  one  of  the  most  experienced  agriculturists  in  the  county,  and  one 
too  who  had  the  advantage  of  scientific  training.  The  information  about  the  geology 
could,  as  you  will  at  once  see,  be  only  general,  and  I  have  accordingly  written  it 
across  the  columns. 

Mr.  Eichard  J.  Maxwell  Gumbleton,  J.  P.,  Glanatore,  Tallow,  County 
Waterford,  a  successful  breeder  and  exporter  of  Shorthorns  in  South- 
ern Ireland,  has  been  kind  enough  to  famish  some  expressions  of  opin- 
ion as  well  as  information  on  various  points  referred  to  in  your  instruc- 
tions. Mr.  Gumbleton  states  that  the  best  method  of  exporting  cattle 
from  the  south  of  Ireland  to  the  United  States  is  by  shipping  them 
from  the  ports  of  Cork  or  Waterford  via  Liverpool  to  any  port  of  our 
country.  There  are,  he  says,  very  valuable  herds  of  Shorthorns  in 
Ireland,  and  the  bulls  from  these  herds  he  has  no  doubt  would  pay  well 
for  exportation  to  the  United  States.  The  only  other  breed  peculiarly 
good,  Mr.  Gumbleton  says,  are  the  Kerry  cattle,  which  are  very  pretty 
(small  in  size  .and  black)  and  very  good  milkers.  The  Shorthorns  in 
Ireland  are  altogether  bred  for  dairy  purposes,  the  mixed  breeds  being 
reserved  more  for  the*  butcher.  Latterly  the  breeding  of  stock  in  the 
south  of  Ireland  is  on, the  increase,  and  the  supply  is  very  much  in  ex- 
cess of  the  home  demand ;  in  fact  the  stock-breeders  of  Ireland  live  by 
exporting  vast  numbers  of  cattle  every  year  to  England  and  Scotland.  It 
would,  therefore,  in  Mr.  Gumbleton's  opinion,  be  highly  undesirable  to 
export  cattle  from  the  United  States  to  Ireland  for  dairy  uses  or  for  the 
purpose  of  the  butcher  j  in  fact,  sending  cattle  to  Ireland  would  be 
somewhat  like  u  sending  coals  to  Newcastle."  His  experience  is  that 
cattle,  as  a  rule>  if  circumstances  be  favorable,  greatly  improve  by  ex 
portation,  and  he  would  willingly  use  an  American-bred  bull,  if  well- 
bred,  and  think  the  fact  of  his  coming  from  America  a  good  recom- 
mendation. He  doubts  if  the  imported  Shorthorns  in  the  United  States 
are  superior  to  the  best  herds  in  England  and  Ireland,  and  he  strongly 
suspects  there  are  a  greater  number  of  first-class  Shorthorns  in  England 
and  Ireland  than  there  are  in  the  United  States.  He  believes,  however, 
that  most  breeders  would  be  glad  to  have  a  change  of  blood,  provided 
the  animals  were  well-bred,  and  he  considers  such  a  change  would  be 
attended  with  satisfactory  results  to  all  concerned. 

Mr.  Eichard  Good,  Aherlow,  County  Cork,  an  extensive  and  success- 
ful cattle  breeder  and  exporter,  has  in  reply  to  questions  given  the  fol- 
lowing information  in  connection  with  the  cattle  trade : 

The  best  animals  to  export  to  the  United  States  are  Shorthorns,  and  Pedigree  Short- 
horns can  be  had  as  low  as  £40,  and  as  high  as  £1,000,  or  more,  each.  Kerry  cattle 
are  also  very  good,  and  these  are  attracting  more  attention  than  they  did  formerly, 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM. 


227 


owing  to  the  ease  with  which  they  are  managed.     They  are  particularly  suited 
mountainous  districts,  which  -would  not   properly  feed  Shorthorns.      Good  Ken 


to 

Kerrys 

can  be  had  for  £20  each.  The  best  means  of  exporting  cattle  from  the  south  of  Ire- 
land would  be  via  the  ports  of  Cork  or  Waterford  to  Liverpool,  and  thence  by  the 
steamers  of  the  National  Line  to  the  United  States.  The  steamers  of  the  National 
Line  being  the  largest  and  steadiest,  are  best  adapted  for  the  purpose.  As  to  fodder, 
hay,  oats,  bran,  and. some  cake  would  form  very  good  food  for  the  voyage.  The  sup- 
ply of  cattle  in  the  south  of  Ireland  is  very  much  in  excess  of  the  home  demand,  and 
the  surplus  stock  are  exported  to  the  midland  counties  of  England  and  Scotland. 

The  rate  for  transportation  of  cattle  from  Cork  to  Liverpool,  by  local 
steamers,  is  about  $2.60  per  head,  insurance  extra. 

It  may  prove  interesting  to  note  that  the  total  acreage  of  the  province 
of  Munster  is  5,934,682,  which  during  the  years  1882  and  1883  was 
utilized  as  indicated  in  the  inclosed  statement. 

JOHN  J.  PIATT, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Queenstown,  April  3,  1884. 


Eeturn  shoicing  the  number  and  description  of  cattle  in  each  county  in  the  province  of  Mun- 
8ter  during  the  years  1882  and  1883. 


Counties. 

Milch  cows. 

Two  years 
old  and 
upwards. 

One  year 
old  and 
under  two 

years. 

Under  one 
year. 

Total. 

Cork: 

1882 

177  621 

41  ^78 

63  076 

101  309 

383  °84 

1863     

175  800 

38  601 

66  151 

109  845 

390  397 

Kerry  : 
Ig82     

103  519 

21  725 

29  449 

51  511 

206  ^04 

1883  

101  851 

20  759 

28  691 

56  574 

203  075 

Clare  : 
1882  :  

51  604 

33  805 

34  180 

36  564 

156  153 

1883 

54  032 

•>g  634 

37  257 

44  136 

164  059 

Limerick: 

1882 

96  315 

24  484 

23  187 

59  854 

203  840 

1883    

95  855 

03  389 

25*  566 

66*  234 

211  044 

Tipperary  : 
1882  ,  

81  080 

51,  199 

49,  543 

60,  886 

242,  708 

1883  

83  076 

52  504 

55  748 

63  857 

255  185 

Waterford: 
1882    

41  686 

13  682 

18  701 

22  771 

96  840 

1883  

40  958 

13  579 

19  990 

24,  246 

98,  713 

Total  : 
1882 

551  895 

186  173 

218  136 

332  895 

1,289  029 

1883  

551  572 

177  406 

233,  603 

364,  892 

1,  327,  473 

Increase  iu  1883 

15  467 

31,  907 

38,444 

253 

8  767 

Breeds  of  cattle  in  the  south  of  Ireland. 


Name  of  breed. 

Annual  aver- 
age pounds 
of  milk. 

Milk  to 
pounds  of 
butter. 

Height  at  matur- 
ity. 

Live  weight. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Cow. 

Bull 

Ox. 

Shorthorn  

9,  450 
4,  000  to  5,  000 
3,  000  to  4,  000 
8,  000  to  9,  500 

Lbs. 
38 

In. 

56 
48 
50 
54 

In. 
60 

50 
52 
58 

In. 

64 
52 
54 
62 

Cwt. 
9  to  14 
4 
5 
9 

Cwt. 
15  to  23 
5 
6 
12 

Cwt. 
12  to  20 

| 
7 
15 

Kerry 

Dexter 

. 

Limerick  Dairy  



228 


CATTLE -AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 
Breeds  of  cattle  in  the  south  of  Ireland— Continued. 


Name  of  breed. 

Age  at 
matur- 
ity. 

Weight  of 
meat  at 
maturity. 

Color. 

Description. 

How  long 
bred  pure. 

Origin  of  breed. 

Shorthorn  
Kerry      

Trs. 
5 

5 

Cwt. 
6  to  9 

4 

Bed  and 
roan. 

Black.... 

This  is  well  known  . 
Small  hardy  mount- 

100 years. 
Time  im- 

Imported    from 
Yorkshire    and 
Durham. 
Aboriginal. 

Dexter 

5 

5 

Bed  

ain  breed. 
Small  breed;  good 

memo- 
rial. 
100  years  . 

Cross  between  Ker- 

Limerick Dairy 

5 

7 

Bed  and 
roan. 

for  fattening;  not 
so  milky  as  Kerry. 

Middle-sized  ;  horns 
longer  than  those 
of  the  Shorthorns  ; 
good  milkers. 

Time  im- 
memo- 
rial. 

ry    and    Devon  ; 
originated    by   a 
man  named  Dex- 
ter. 
Cross   between 
Shorthorn      and 
ancient      dairy 
breed  of  the  dis- 
trict. 

Mean  temperature.— Cork,  51.5°  Falir. ;  Limerick,  49.4° ;  Waterford,  48.6°.  The  mean 
temperature  of  the  southern  half  of  Ireland  varies  from  about  48°  in  the  interior  to  52° 
on  the  southwest  seashore. 

Substratum. — The  mountains  in  the  south  of  Ireland  are  all  Silurian  and  Devonian 
slates  and  sandstones.  The  plain  of  Munster,  which  comprises  the  great  cattle  dis- 
tricts of  Limerick,  Tipperary,  and  North  Cork,  is  mountain  limestone.  Most  of  the 
river  valleys  also  contain  mountain  limestone.  In  many  parts  of  the  country  the  un- 


tricts,  and  sandstone  and  slate  gravels,  clays,  and  sands  in  the  Silurian  and  Devonian 
districts. 

Cultivated  grasses. — The  following  are  the  kinds  of  grasses  sown  in  laying  down  land 
for  permanent  pasture :  Poa  trivialis,  roughis,  meadow  grass ;  Poa  pratensis,  smooth- 
stalked  meadow  grass;  Festuca  duriuscula,  or  hard  fescue,  a  variety  of  Festuca  ovina, 
sheep's  fescue ;  Dactylis  glomerata,  rough  cocksfoot  grass  ;  Solium  perenne,  perennial 
rye-grass ;  Anthoxantum  odoratum,  sweet-scented  vernal  grass ;  Cynosurus  cristata, 
crested  dog's-tail  grass ;  Alopicurus  pratensis,  meadow  fox-tail  grass ;  Phleum  pra- 
tense,  common  cat's-tail  grass ;  Avena  flavescens,  yellow  oat ;  Festuca  loliacea,  a  va- 
riety of  Festuca  pratensis,  meadow  fescue. 

[Common  red  clover  and  Italian  rye  are  grown  for  hay,  but  are  cut  for  soiling  in 
early  spring.  White  clover  is  generally  sown  with  the  grass  seeds  for  permanent 
pasture.] 

Total  acreage  of  Munster  and  utilization  of  same  during  the  years  1882  and  1883. 


Year. 

Total  ex- 
tent under 
crops,  in- 
cluding 
meadow 
and  clover. 

Grass. 

Fallow. 

Woods 
and  planta- 
tions. 

Bog  and 
marsh  and 
barren 
mountain 
land,  water, 
roads, 
fences,  &c. 

Total  acre- 
age. 

1882... 

1  246  394 

3  248  167 

4  578 

Ill  415 

1  324  128 

1883  —  

1  212  170 

3  283  458 

4  120 

110  991 

1  323  943 

>  5,934,682 

35  291 

Decrease  in  1883  

34  224 

458 

424 

185 

THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  229 

BUTTER  INDUSTRY  OF  IRELAND. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  PJATT,  OF , CORK 

In  my  report  on  the  credit  and  trade systeium  the  south  of  Ireland 
published  in  No.  43  of  Consular  Reports,  I  mentioned  the  butter  trade 
as  the  principal  one  identified  with  Cork. 

It  has  more  than  once,  since  I  forwarded  that  report,  occurred  to  me 
that  a  special  report  on  the  butter  industry  and  trade  in  Southern  Ire- 
land would  not  only  be  interesting  to  our  people  at  large,  but  might 
afford  some  suggestions  whereby  our  many  countrymen  interested  in 
dairy  farming,  as  well  as  those  dealing  in  \lairy  products,  would  be 
benefited. 

Accordingly,  as  giving  full  information  regarding  the  butter  indus- 
try in  Ireland,  and  especially  in  the  south  of  Ireland,  as  well  as  discuss- 
ing the  relative  condition  of  this  local  industry  as  compared  with  the 
same  industry  in  other  countries,  stating  the  drawbacks  under  which  it 
labors,  and  suggesting  the  proper  steps  to  be  taken  for  their  removal 
and  for  the  improvement  of  this  staple  industry  of  Southern  Ireland,  I 
inclose  a  copy  of  the  evidence  given  last  June,  before  a  special  commit- 
tee of  the  British  House  of  Commons,  by  William  J.  Lane,  esq.,  of  Cork. 

Mr.  Lane  has  contributed  directly  to  one  or  two  reports  which  I  have 
heretofore  made  on  trade  between  the  United  States  and  Ireland,  &c. 
He  is  a  gentleman  of  great  intelligence  and  enterprise,  himself  a  butter 
merchant  of  large  experience,  one  of  the  principal  promoters  of  the  Cork 
Exhibition  of  1883,  and  likely  to  be  widely  known  henceforth  in  the 
politics  of  Southern  Ireland,  being  one  of  the  newly  chosen  members  of 
Parliament  of  the  Nationalist  party  from  the  county  of  Cork.  To  Mr. 
Lane's  statement,  which  relates  to,  illustrates,  and  discusses  the  dairy 
and  butter  industry  at  large,  I  add  a  report  on  the  butter  trade  of  Cork, 
explaining  the  advantages  of  the  climate  and  soil  in  Munster  for  the 
production  of  butter,  presenting  various  interesting  statistics  in  con- 
nection with  the  local  butter  manufacture  and  trade,  describing  the 
customs  and  methods  of  the  Cork  Butter  Exchange,  giving  the  price  of 
butter  for  a  long  series  of  years,  &c.,  specially  prepared  and  furnished 
for  my  use  by  T.-J.  Clanchy,  esq.,  another  prominent  butter  merchant 
of  the  city,  who  is  mentioned  in  Mr.  Lane's  statement,  and  who  is  par- 
ticularly identified  with  the  trade  in  canned  butter.  Mr.  Clanchy  has 
obtained  gold  and  other  medals  at  the  Paris,  Calcutta,  and  Melbourne 
Exhibitions,  during  recent  years,  over  all  competitors,  for  his  hermeti- 
cally sealed  canned  butter,  and  contributed  to  the  consular  exhibit  from 
this  district  last  year  at  New  Orleans  a  full  display  of  his  goods,  which 
I  think  must  have  attracted  the  attention  of  such  visitors  as  were  inter- 
ested in  the  dairy  products  of  the  United  States. 

In  connection  with  the  subject  of  canned  butter,  it  may  be  well  to 
direct  the  attention  of  those  in  our  country  so  interested  to  the  oppor- 
tunity which,  I  am  told,  exists  for  a  large  development  of  American 
enterprise  with  respect  to  this  class  of  butter. 

Within  seven  or  eight  years  France,  Germany,  and  Denmark  have, 
by  the  adoption  of  the  system  of  packing  butter  in  hermetically  sealed 
cans,  each  containing  1,  2,  3,  7, 14,  or  24  pounds  of  butter,  secured  the 
entire,  or  about  the  entire,  trade  of  supplying  the  ships  of  the  world.  I 
believe  that  the  American  creamery  butter  is  eminently  suitable  for  this 
particular  branch  of  the  export  butter  trade.  If  this  butter  were  packed 


230  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING 

and  sealed  in  cans  similar  to  those  exhibited  by  Mr.Clanchy,  which  pre- 
serve the  butter  fresh  and  sweet  for  a  long  period  in  any  climate,  im- 
mediately on  being  made  at  the  creameries,  nothing,  so  far  as  I  can  see, 
is  to  prevent  its  use  in  supplying  the  immense  foreign  shipping  trade 
of  our  country. 

Whereas  all  vessels  going  from  Europe  to  America  take  with  them  a 
supply  for  the  double  voyage,  it  would  be  quite  practicable,  if  this  enter- 
prise were  introduced  in  the  United  States,  to  secure  the  entire  business 
for  American  exporters.  In  my  opinion  our  countrymen  would  be  able 
to  compete  most  successfully  with  European  countries  for  this  trade, 
inasmuch  as  all  dairy  products  can  be  raised  so  much  cheaper  in  the 
United  States  than  at  this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

For  the  large  passenger  steamships  the  finest  butter  is  utilized,  and 
also  for  export  to  countries  where  the  consuming  population  require, 
and  can  afford  to  pay  for  it,  such  as  India,  Japan,  China,  Australia,  the 
South  American  countries,  and  those  bordering  upon  the  Mediterra- 
nean. 

For  merchant  shipping,  and  for  the  lower  or  poorer  classes  of  the 
population  in  the  above-named  countries,  a  second  and  third  quality  of 
butter  is  good  enough,  and  it  is  for  the  inferior  qualities  the  United 
States,  it  would  appear  from  the  published  market  reports,  require  a 
greater  outlet  than  for  the  products  of  the  best  dairies,  inasmuch  as  the 
American  markets  are  constantly  glutted  with  unsalable  surplus  stock 
of  lower  grade  butter,  chiefly  owing  to  the  inroads  which  the  improved 
manufacture  of  butterine  has  made  upon  the  markets  hitherto  available 
for  the  consumption  of  cheap  genuine  butter.  Since  merchant  vessels 
use  chiefly  butter  of  the  third  quality,  it  will  be  seen  that  a  market  for 
large  quantities  of  this  class  of  butter  might  be  found  if  the  canning 
system  were  adopted  for  the  supply  now  furnished  for  the  most  part  by 
European  exporters. 

Within  a  few  years  past  two  Irish  houses  have  adopted  this  system 
of  tinning  butter,  and  their  efforts  have  been  crowned  with  great  suc- 
cess, although  their  combined  shipments  are  so  small  that  it  does  not 
contradict  my  general  statement  that  France,  Germany,  and  Denmark 
monopolize  the  trade.  The  two  Irish  houses  referred  to  are  those  of 
Messrs.  Clear  and  Sons,  and  Mr.  Clanchy,  who  furnishes  the  accom- 
panying interesting  report.  The  latter  shipper,  at  much  trouble  and 
expense,  gave  his  fellow- tradesmen  in  the  United  States  an  opportu- 
nity of  inspecting  for  themselves  the  way  in  which  the  tinned  butter 
trade*  in  Ireland  is  worked,  by  the  exhibit  at  New  Orleans  already  men- 
tioned. 

In  my  report  on  the  credit  and  trade  system,  I  explained  the  method 
by  which  transactions  are  regulated  between  the  producers  and  the 
butter  brokers  in  Cork  market. 

It  may  be  worth  while  to  quote  that  portion  of  said  report ;  it  is  as 
follows  : 

In  the  beginning  of  the  year  the  butter  brokers  of  Cork  market  advance  loans  to 
the  farmers  to  the  amount  of  two-thirds  of  the  value  of  their  butter  produce  for  the 
year,  at  rates  of  interest  varying  from  6  to  10  per  cent.  With  this  money  the  farmer 
pays  his  rent,  buys  stock  and  seeds ;  according  as  he  makes  his  butter  he  sends  it 
to  the  broker  to  pay  off  his  debt. 

The  brokers  borrow  the  money  so  advanced  from  local  banks,  at  a  lesser  rate  of  in- 
terest than  they  charge.  When  they  receive  the  butter  from  the  farmers  they  sell  it 
to  the  exporters  for  prompt  cash,  and  the  exporters  ship  to  English  merchants,  giv- 
ing one  and  two  months'  credit  for  the  payment. 

The  export  of  butter  is  a  different  branch  of  the  trade  conducted  by 
a  different  set  of  merchants,  who,  on  receiving  their  orders  from  their 


THE   UNITED- KINGDOM.  231 

foreign  correspondents,  go  to  the  Cork  Butter  Exchange  daily  and  buy 
the  brands  they  require  at  the  open  competition  which  takes  place,  as  ex- 
plained by  Mr.  Clanchy,  at  11  a.  m.  each  day  ;  and  they  resell  to  their  cus- 
tomers at  a  fixed  regulation  commission  of  2s.  M.  (or  60  cents)  per  hundred- 
weight over  the  published  Cork  market  price  of  that  date.  This  commis- 
sion includes  buying,  selecting,  carting,  coopering,  and  shipping.  Out 
of  this  commission  they  allow  buyers  a  discount  of  two  months  at  5  per 
cent.  (*.  e.j  2d.  per  pound  sterling,  or  4  cents  per  $4.87)  for  prompt  cash 
payments,  or  they  draw  a  bill  en  the  purchaser  at  two  months  after  date 
for  the  net  amount  of  the  invoice.  Unlike  the  American  shippers  they 
give  the  butter  to  the  buyer  before  they  receive  either  cash  or  bill,  and 
frequently  they  have  to  regret  this  system  of  trading,  as  their  customers 
often  become  bankrupts  and  completely  evade  payment  for  the  goods 
purchased.  Having  observed  the  system  here  and  in  the  United  States, 
I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  the  latter  is  the  better  and  safer,  since  it  re- 
quires the  drafts  to  be  paid  by  the  consignees  before  they  obtain  posses- 
sion of  the  bills  of  lading,  and  consequently  before  they  get  possession 
of  the  goods. 

JOHN  J.  PIATT, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Corfc,  October  29, 1885. 


THE   BUTTER  TRADE   OF   CORK.* 

The  staple  product  of  the  South  of  Ireland  is  butter.  The  province  of  Munster,  of 
which  Cork  is  the  chief  city,  is  essentially  and  before  all  other  things  a  butter-pro- 
ducing country,  for  which  it  possesses  a  remarkable  combination  of  natural  advan- 
tages not  to  be  found  together  elsewhere.  The  essential  conditions  for  making  good 
butter,  are:  (1)  A  mild,  equable  climate,  not  too  hot  in  summer  and  not  too  cold  in 
winter.  (2)  A  sufficient  rainfall  to  promote  an  'abundant  growth  of  grass.  (3)  A 
good  firm  soil,  not  over-rich.  Fine  butter  cannot  be  made  in  an  excessively  hot  cli- 
mate, and  of  course  snow  and  frost,  that  cover  and  bind  up  the  pastures  for  a  consid- 
erable part  of  the  year,  render  its  production  in  quantity  impossible. 

Grass-fed  butter  will  always  be  the  best,  and  the  country  where  the  cattle  can  be 
fully  grass-fed  in  the  open  air  for  the  longest  period  of  the  year  is  that  in  which  most 
butter  of  good  quality  can  be  produced. 

The  climate  of  Munster  is  rendered  singularly  even  in  its  temperature  by  its  geo- 
graphical position.  Its  coast  lino  extends  over  nearly  the  whole  southern  end  and  a 
large  portion  of  the  western  side  of  the  island,  receiving  the  first  influence  of  the  great 
warm  ocean  current,  the  Gulf  Stream,  which  acts  as  an  equalizer  of  temperature,  a 
sort  of  governor,  preventing  the  winter  from  being  too  cold  and  the  summer  from 
being  too  hot.  The  warm  vapors  floating  over  the  land  in  winter  raise  the  temper- 
ature, and  by  forming  clouds  and  rain  in  the  summer  prevent  excessive  heat. 

'The  winters  are  much  milder  than  in  other  countries  of  the  same  latitude.  Occa- 
sionally a  winter  passes  without  sufficient  ice  to  give  even  one  day's  skating. 

The  rainfall  is  very  great,  and  combined  with  the  mildness  of  the  seasons  causes  an 
abundant  growth  of  grass  for  a  large  part  of  the  year.  A  great  proportion  of  the 
pastures  are  on  undulating  uplands,  the  configuration  of  which  lends  itself  to  rapid 
irrigation,  the  water  running  off  the  slope  and  leaving  the  grounds  sufficiently  moist 
without  morass  or  sponginess. 

The  pastures  in  those  upland  districts  are  not  over-rich,  but  good,  sound,  friable 
soil,  producing  sweet,  crisp  herbage,  the  butter  made  from  which  possesses  great 
keeping  properties  and  a  peculiarly  delightful  taste,  the  true  butter  flavor,  so  dear 
to  those  who  know  and  can  appreciate  it,  the  absence  of  which  is  to  be  noticed  in 
many  of  the  continental  butters,  and  in  some  Irish  butters  made  off  very  rich  lowland 
pastures. 

It  is  found  that  the  excess  of  fat  or  oil  made  off  deep  rich  soil  makes  them  more 
liable  to  turn  rancid,  and  reduces  their  keeping  qualities,  and  that  such  butters,  how- 

*  This  report  was  prepared  by  Mr.  T.  J.  Clanchy,  a  Cork  butter  merchant. 


232 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


ever  good  they  may  be  for  immediate  use,  are  not  so  suitable  for  preserving  or  for  ex- 
port ibo  hot  climates  as  the  butter  from  the  well-drained  upland  districts  and  the 
lighter  but  good  soils  which  prevail  to  a  very  largo  extent  in  Minister.  Even  from 
the  richest  lands  of  Minister,  such  as  the  celebrated  Golden  Vein,  a  well-defined  belt 
of  land  which  runs  through  the  province  and  which  is  considered  to  be  almost  un- 
surpassed in  the  world  for  its  line  quality,  the  soil  and  climate  are  so  favorable  that 
the  butter,  although  perhaps  more  suitable  for  high-class  mild-cure  make,  still  pos- 
sesses considerable  keeping  powers  when  properly  preserved,  although  not  to  the 
same  degree  as  the  produce  ot  the  lighter  pastures. 

The  following  is  the  return  of  acreage  under  grass  meadow  and  clover  in  the  four 
provinces  of  Ireland  in  1884 : 


Provinces. 

Acres  under 
meadow 

and  clover. 

Acres  under 
grass. 

Total 
acres  under 
meadow, 
clover,  and 
grass. 

1/einster 

504  697 

2  684  132 

3  278  829 

Minister         .....  ..........                  .  ..... 

591  G97 

3  29*5  445 

^'ggS*  ]42 

Ulster  

49'J  794 

2  313  248 

2  800  042 

Connauglit 

28'j  542 

2  055  483 

9  339  025 

Total  for  all  Ireland 

1  969  730 

10  346  308 

12  309  038 

The  total  quantity  of  arable  land  in  Munster  in  1854  was  4,730,840  acres,  of  which 
3,885,14'2,  or  b2  per  cent.,  was  under  pasture,  besides  which  a  large  proportion  of  the 
arable  land  was  devoted  to  growing  roots  and  fodder  for  the  winter  feeding  of  stock. 
Suitability  of  soil  and  climate  would  not,  from  the  butter- producers'  point  of  view,  be 
of  much  use  without  a  supply  of  milch  cows,  and  in  this  respect  the  province  of  Mun- 
ster is  well  provided.  According  to  the  annual  Government  returns  of  live-stock  for 
1885,  the  number  of  milch  cows  in  each  of  the  four  provinces  of  Ireland  is  returned  as 
follows : 

Leinster 238,636 

Munster 549,578 

Ulster 190,871 

Connaught 438,396 

Total  for  Ireland 1,417,481 

From  which  it  appears  that  Munetor  has  more  than  one-third  of  the  milch  cows  of 
Ireland. 

The  returns  of  live  stock  in  England  for  the  year  1884  show  that  the  number  of 
milch  cows  in  that  country  was  1,715,27*,  and  iu  Scotland  408,745,  so  that  Munster 
contains  very  nearly  one-third  as  many  milch  cows  as  the  whole  of  England  and  con- 
siderably more  than  all  Scotland. 

Taking  the  return  of  live  stock  in  Ireland  and  in  other  European  countries.  I  find  the 
following  to  be  the  result : 

Number  of  live  stock  and  population  in  the  following  countries. 


Date. 

Countries. 

Live  stock. 

Population. 

1883 

Great  Britain  

5,  962,  779 

29,  710,  012 

3880 

Belgium  

4,  096,  021 
1  382  815 

5,  174,  836 
5  536  654 

1880 
1873 

ICQ] 

France  

Germany  

11,446,253 
15,  776,  702 

37,  321,  180 
45,  234,  061 

1,  434,  406 

4,  114,  000 

in-      this  **  aPPears  tna*  while  Great  Britain  has  only  20  head  of  live  stock  to  each 
100  inhabitants;  Belgium,  25;  France,  30;  Germany,  35,  and   Holland  35,  Ireland 


In  Ireland  cattle  have  to  a  great  extent  replaced  human  beings.     The  population  of 
Ireland  in  1841  was  8,175,124,  while  in  1881  it  was  reduced  to  5, 174,836,  a  shrinkage  of 


THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  233 

over  3,000,000.  The  conditions  that  have  brought  about  this  remarkable  change,  a 
change  which  is  unparalleled  in  peace  or  war,  in  any  country  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  are  well  worthy  of  the  thoughtful  study  of  statesmen  and  economists.  Whether 
this  result  is  the  outcome  of  state  policy  in  the  past,  or  of  the  accidents  of  geographical 
environments,  laws,  and  social  system,  it  equally  suggests  Goldsmith's  celebrated  lines, 
which,  by  substituting  "  live  stock"  for  "  wealth."  apply  to  it  with  remarkable  apti- 
tude : 

III  fares  the  land,  to  hastening  ills  a  prey, 

"Where  stock  accumulates  and  men  decay. 

The  bearing,  however,  of  these  figures  on  the  question  of  the  butter  supply,  is  that 
they  show  that  Ireland  has  a  larger  proportion  of  its  butter  to  export,  and  less  people 
at  home  to  consume  it,  than  any  other  country,  an  additional  proof  of  the  great  im- 
portance of  the  Irish  butter  industry  to  commerce. 

The  city  of  Cork,  the  capital  of  the  province,  is  the  natural  outlet  for  the  greater 
portion  of  the  butter  produced  in  Munster,  owing  to  its  central  position,  its  unrivaled 
harbor  of  Quoenstown,  and  its  direct  communication  by  roads  and  railways,  which 
tap  the  principal  butter-producing  districts.  A  butter  market  has  been  held  in  Cork 
for  a  very  long  time,  and  in  1769  it  was  placed  under  the  management  of  a  committee 
of  the  principal  merchants,  under  whom  it  remained  for  one  hundred  and  fourteen 
years,  until  the  present  year,  when  a  special  act  of  Parliament  was  passed,  transfer- 
ing  its  management  to  a  body  of  trustees,  with  power  to%nake  by-laws  for  its  regu- 
lation. 

The  quantity  of  butter  which  passes  through  this  market  is  enormous.  In  the  first 
year,  1709,  of  the  record,  105,309  packages  passed  through  the  market,  and  the  annual 
quantity  has  since  largely  increased,  being  now  considerably  more  than  three  times 
as  much. 

The  largest  quantity  received  in  any  one  year  was  in  1878,  when  434,239  firkins 
passed  through  the  market.  ' 

The  Cork  butter  market  is  held  every  day,  Sunday  and  a  few  holidays  excepted, 
and  the  sales  on  a  single  day  have  beeii  as  large  as  3,800  firkins  of  about  75  pounds 
net,  which,  when  prices  were  high,  would  be  value  for  about  £12,000  sterling  ($58,398.) 
All  the  butter  has  to  be  cleared  away  within  the  day  to  make  room  for  another  large 
quantity  coming  by  road  and  rail  for  the  next  day's  market.  The  system  of  selling 
butter  in  the  Cork  market  is  peculiar  to  this  market.  At  a  quarter  before  11  a.  m., 
buyers  and  sellers  assemble  around  a  table,  and  at  the  first  stroke  of  11  all  buying  must 
be  concluded,  and  the  whole  quantity  of  butter,  frequently  some  thousands  of  firkins, 
has  changed  hands.  To  the  uninitiated  the  buying  and  selling  at  this  table  appears  to 
be  a  perfect  Babel,  which  can  only  be  understood  by  the  brokers  and  exporters,  who 
keep  up  a  perfect  cross-fire  of  offers  and  bids  until  the  stroke  of  the  clock  at  11,  when 
suddenly  all  the  noise  ceases,  buying  and  selling  are  over  for  the  day,  and  the  buyers 
proceed  to  carfc  away  their  purchases.  The  firkin  butter  is  inspected  and  classified 
by  sworn  judges,  and  all  the  bargains  at  the  table  are  made  for  the  various  qualities 
of  butter  so  classified.  This  applies  only  to  the  officially  classified  butter,  but  there 
is  now  also,  since  the  passing  of  the  recent  act  of  Parliament,  an  open  market,  where 
butter  is  bought  and  sold  onthe  judgment  of  the  buyers  and  sellers  themselves,  with- 
out any  official  classification. 

There  is  another  branch  of  the  trade  which  is  of  great  importance — that  of  pre- 
served butter  in  hermetically-closed  cans.  Up  to  very  recently  there  were  certain 
restrictions  placed  on  this  branch  of  the  trade  in  the  interest  of  the  dealers  hi  fir- 
kins, and,  although  Irish  butter,  from  its  great  keeping  properties,  is,  perhaps,  the 
most  suitable  of  any  in  the  world  for  preserving,  this  important  branch  of  the  trade 
was  allowed  to  go  into  the  hands  of  the  Danish  and  French  packers,  who  had  several 
years' start  of  the  Irish  tinned- butter  preservers,  and  got  possession  of  the  various 
foreign  markets.  It  is  gratifying  to  be  able  to  state,  however,  that  within  the  last  few 
years,  since  the  Paris  Exhibition  of  1878,  the  Irish  canned-butter  trade  has  greatly  ex- 
tended, and  has  been  particularly  active  in  the  last  two  years. 

In  1878  the  writer  of  this  paper  exhibited  Irish  butter  preserved  by  a  special  pro 
cess  at  the  Concours,  open  to  ail  nations,  held  in  the  Paris  Exhibition,  and  gained  the 
only  gold  medal  thereat  for  preserved  butter.  As  a  further  test  of  its  keeping  prop- 
erties, he  sent  his  preserved  butter  to  the  Melbourne  Exhibition  of  1880,  and  after 
crossing  the  tropics  on  the  voyage  out,  it  gained  the  highest  award,  the  silver  medal 
and  first  order  of  merit.  He  has  since  gained  a  silver  medal  at  Calcutta,  and  his  pre- 
served Irish  butter  is  now  (1835)  on  exhibition  in  the  Government  section  of  the 
World's  Exposition  at  New  Orleans. 

The  reports  from  very  remote  parts  of  the  world,  where  it  has  been  sent,  Java, 
the  Straits  Settlements,  China,  India,  South  America,  Africa,  and  other  tropical  and 
trans- tropical  countries,  are  most  encouraging,  and  there  is  every  indication  that  Irish 
preserved  butter  is  rapidly  gaining  favor  all  over  the  world. 

The  following  tables  will  show  the  fluctuations  in  the  prices  of  the  finest  butter  for 
forty  years,  ending  in  1881: 


234 


CATTLE    AND   DAIRY   FAEMING. 


Tables  (prepared  ly  the  writer)  showing  the  average  price  of  the  finest  butter  each  month, 
year,  and  ten  years,  and  the  rise  in  prices  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  price  each  year, 
for  the  forty  years  ending  in  1831. 


[In  shillings  per  cvrt.] 
1841  to  1851. 


1 

1 

1 

e 

*Sd 

0 

m 

Season. 

i 

o3 

§ 

"i 

1 

1 

I 

§ 

i 

rg 

si 

a 

'a 

c? 

| 

£? 

0 

"p, 

3 

i 

« 

§ 

1 

oj 

>  § 

9 

«1 

E 

5 

£ 

t» 

o 

ft 

ft 

5 

£ 

E 

^ 

s 

1841-'42  

111 

100 

89 

89 

90 

84 

89 

90 

86 

89 

85 

80 

90 

31 

1842-'43  

74 

90 

80 

81 

75 

80 

f,0 

78 

78 

82 

86 

88 

81 

16 

1843-'44  

84 

86 

73 

72 

70 

(59 

72 

73 

73 

75 

77 

74 

78 

17 

1844-M5  

86 

76 

73 

71 

71 

76 

81 

94 

96 

94 

94 

100 

84 

29 

1845-'46  

101 

90 

77 

83 

83 

91 

93 

94 

86 

88 

91 

90 

89 

24 

1846-47  

98 

90 

74 

84 

85 

93 

93 

89 

92 

90 

93 

102 

90 

28 

1847-'48  

105 

102 

88 

85 

87 

02 

91 

88 

90 

9t 

98 

100 

93 

18 

1848-'49  

108 

94 

83 

.82 

81 

78 

76 

75 

70 

70 

70 

72 

80 

36 

1849-'50  

88 

80 

65 

•66 

65 

68 

72 

71 

73 

74 

78 

78 

73 

23 

1850-'51  

88 

84 

65 

66 

69 

79 

81 

78 

79 

80 

89 

89 

80 

24 

Average  .  . 

94 

83 

77 

78 

78 

81 

83 

83 

82 

84 

86 

87 

84 

24 

1851  to  1861. 


1851-'52  

86 

80 

68 

70 

73 

75 

76 

80 

77 

78 

80 

80 

77 

18 

1852-'53  

88 

77 

69 

69 

72 

78 

79 

86 

90 

95 

94 

94 

82 

26 

1853-'54  

104 

102 

81 

90 

93 

95 

96 

98 

101 

107 

107 

107 

98 

26 

1854-'55  

111 

101 

92 

92 

96 

96 

98 

98 

102 

104 

105 

107 

100 

19 

1855-'56  

120 

113 

100 

98 

99 

101 

106 

112 

112 

114 

118 

122 

109 

24 

1856-'57  

140 

130 

106 

105 

107 

109 

114 

116 

120 

121 

122 

122 

118 

35 

1857-'58  

120 

114 

100 

103 

108 

114 

116 

110 

105 

114 

118 

126 

112 

26 

1858-'59  

122 

112 

99 

104 

104 

105 

105 

105 

108 

120 

128 

126 

112 

27 

1859-'CO  

120 

112 

102 

103 

106 

110 

115 

117 

120 

121 

127 

130 

115 

28 

1860-'61  

128 

122 

107 

106 

103 

106 

111 

114 

115 

116 

112 

113 

113 

23 

Average.. 

314 

106 

92 

04 

96 

99 

102 

103 

105 

109 

111 

112 

104 

25 

1861  to 


1861-'62  

113 

111 

95 

96 

97 

102 

103 

105 

110 

113 

116 

116 

10G 

21 

1862-'63  

127 

103 

93 

93 

94 

98 

100 

104 

105 

115 

•118 

119 

34 

1863-'64  

120 

101 

88 

87 

93 

101 

103 

111 

111 

117 

117 

117 

106 

33 

1864-'65  

J14 

101 

94 

105 

112 

118 

118 

117 

132 

124 

124 

124 

LJ5 

38 

1865-'G6  

127 

106 

102 

110 

117 

120 

130 

129 

130 

134 

135 

136 

123 

34 

18G6-'67  

132 

116 

111 

113 

114 

114 

115 

112 

114 

120 

120 

120 

118 

21 

1867-'68  

122 

108 

100 

99 

97 

102 

106 

105 

107 

115 

120 

121 

109 

25 

18G8-'69  

128 

106 

102 

109 

121 

127 

130 

131 

136 

145 

144 

138 

126 

43 

18G9-'70  

130 

105 

103 

104 

111 

119 

123 

128 

131 

135 

133 

135 

122 

29 

1870-71  

130 

108- 

111 

117 

125 

130 

130 

130 

138 

146 

148 

150 

130 

42 

Average  .  . 

124 

107 

100 

103 

108 

113 

116 

117 

121 

126 

128 

128 

116 

32 

1S71  to  1881. 


1871-72  

187:2-73  
1873-74  
1874-75  
1875-76  
1876-77  

147 
136 
142 
154 
145 
150 
149 

120 
116 
120 
121 
119 
130 
119 

118 
114 
115 
123 
120 
124 
119 

117 
111 
114 

129 
120 
127 
117 

118 
115 
119 
.141 
119 
135 

lie 

124 
122 
129 
146 
129 
149 

120 
125 
135 
14X) 

138 
150 

130 
124 
139 
150 
140 
146 
191 

132 
129 
145 
153 
145 
154 

ion 

135 
138 
151 
155 
146 
158 

19-) 

135 
139 
155 

155 
150 
158 
138 

135 

140 
156 
155 
160 
150 
140 

128 
125 
135 
144 
135 
144 
196 

30 
29 
42 
34 
41 
34 

1878-79  
1879-'80  
1880-'81  

147 

127 
148 

115 

103 
112 

104 
87 
112 

101 
79 
115 

109 
78 
124 

113 
105 
133 

115 
126 
139 

119 
128 
136 

126 
139 
143 

128 
140 
143 

128 
140 
143 

133 
147 
143 

120 
116 
133 

46 
69 
31 

Average  .  . 

144 

117 

114 

113 

117 

128 

133 

133 

140 

143 

144 

146 

131 

38 

THE    UNITED    KINGDOM.  235 

For  tlio  five  years  which  have  passed  of  the  current  decade,  prices  have  been  made 
lower  and  the  tendency  seems  to  be  still  lower  prices. 

The  present  year  is  the  cheapest  for  a  long  time  back,  the  butter  market  feeling 
the  effect  of  the  great  depression  in  prices  as  severely  as  other  classes  of  farmers* 
produce. 

For  the  ten  years  ending  January  1,  1881,  a  little  over  4,000,000  firkins  of  butter 
passed  through  the  Cork  market,  or  an  average  of  400,000  firkins  a  year,  which,  if 
valued  at  £3  10-9.  ($17.03)  per  firkin,  would  give  an  annual  total  of  £1,400,000 
($0,813,100)  as  the  yearly  value  of  the  butter  sold  in  the  Cork  butter  market  during 
these  two  years. 

T.  J.  CLANCHY. 


THE  BUTTER  INDUSTRY  OF  IRELAND. 

[Evidence  of  "William  <J.  Lane,  osq.,  before  committee  of  House  of  Commons.] 

To  discuss  the  question  of  the  Irish  butter  industry  from  either  the  farmer's  or 
trader's  point  of  view  would  bo  an  inexcusable  mistake.  Its  national  importance 
could  hardly  be  overestimated.  The  manufacture  of  butter  is  the  staple  industry  of  Ire- 
land, and  any  close  student  of  what  is  going  on  in  other  countries  must  recognize  that 
the  future  agricultural  prosperity  of  Ireland  largely  depends  on  the  full  development 
of  its  dairy  industries.  While  British  free-trade  legislation  continues  it  would  be 
simply  impossible  for  Ireland  to  compete,  as  a  grain-producing  country,  with  the  ever- 
increasing  wheat  areas  of  Canada,  United  States,  Russia,  India,  Egypt,  and  Australia. 

The  approximate  number  of  cattle  in  the  United  States  is  51,000,000,  and  the  possi- 
ble increase  may  bo  estimated  by  the  fact  that  the  pasturage  lands  west  of  the  Missis- 
sippi exceed  780,000,000  acres.  Each  year  the  cattle-raising  industry  of  the  United 
States  makes  a  vast  stride,  and  year  by  year  the  development  of  the  American  rail- 
way-systems and  the  competition  of  ocean-carrying  lines  enables  the  surplus  produce 
of  America  to  be  landed  on  our  shores  at  prices  with  which  Irish  farmers  cannot  com- 
pete. 

The  threatened  competition  of  Australia  and  South  America  in  the  meat  markets  of 
Great  Britain,  by  means  of  refrigerator  transportation,  should  not  be  minimized  or 
ignored  as  another  source  of  danger  to  the  Irish  cattle  trade.  These  facts  justify  the 
assumption  that  Irish  farmers  cannot,  in  the  future,  look  forward  either  to  the  raising 
of  grain  or  cattle  as  a  remunerative  employment.  Barley  and  oats,  of  course,  may  yet 
be  regarded  as  paying  crops,  but,  like  all  others,  they  also  are  menaced  in  various 
ways.  By  climate  and  the  nature  of  its  soil  Ireland  is  specially  adapted  to  the  manu- 
facture of  butter,  and  its  geographical  position  certainly  gives  it  great  advantages 
for  the  speedy  marketing  of  its  produce,  as  compared  with  the  other  countries  rival- 
ing it  in  the  butter  trade  of  England. 

Addressing  the  Royal  Dublin  Society  in  December,  1879,  Professor  Sheldon  valued 
that  year's  make  of  Irish  butter  at  £6,181,818.  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that 
by  proper  development  the  butter  produce  of  Ireland  could  be  raised  to  an  annual 
value  of  over  £12,000,000,  with  even  the  same  number  of  cows.  This  is  not  difficult 
to  calculate.  With  the  present  very  inferior  breed  of  dairy  cattle  in  Ireland,  the  aver- 
age annual  production  of  milk  per  cow  may  be  put  down  at  430  gallons.  It  requires 
3|  gallons  of  the  milk  yielded  by  these  cows  to  produce  1  pound  of  butter  by  the  ordi- 
nary methods  of  setting  and  churning.  This  gives  a  return  of  123  pounds  of  butter 
per  cow.  The  cows  on  the  Munster  model  school  farm  give  an  average  annual  yield 
of  690  gallons  of  milk,  which,  by  the  use  of  the  separator,  produced  an  average  yield 
of  276  pounds  of  butter  per  cow.  Mr.  Richard  Barter,  of  St.  Anne's,  Blarney,  attains 
an  average  of  228  pounds  of  butter  per  cow  in  his  improved  dairy.  Taking  a  far  lower 
standard  than  Mr.  Barter's  of  what  might  be  achieved  by  an  improved  breed  of  dairy 
cows,  and  an  improved  method  of  manufacture,  I  do  not  think  a  yield  of  205  pounds 
of  butter  per  cow  would  be  an  impossible  achievement,  which  would  be  an  increase 
of  two-thirds  on  the  quantity  made  at  present.  To  estimate  the  increased  price  which 
would  be  otained  for  Irish  butter  manufactured  on  the  most  improved  continental 
systems  at  one-third  of  its  present  value  needs  no  figures  to  support  the  assumption. 
Should  the  accuracy  of  the  above  figures  be  questioned,  which  is  quite  possible,  be- 
cause there  are  no  standard  records  of  the  produce  of  the  average  dairy  cow  of  the 
Irish  farmer,  I  can  fall  back  on  the  wide  room  there  is  to  support  a  vastly-increased 
number  of  dairy  cows  in  Ireland,  to  sustain  my  theory  that  the  butter  produce  of  the 
country  can  be  raised  to  an  annual  value  of  £12,000,000.  This  sum  would  pay  two- 
thirds  of  the  present  rental  of  Ireland,  and  if  the  dairy  reHOurces  of  Ireland  were 


236  CATTLE   AND   UAlliY   FAKMUSQ, 

developed  to  their  fall  capacity,  the  whole  present  rental  should  be  paid  by  the  butter 
produce  alone.  This  shows  the  great  national  importance  of  the  Irish  butter  indus- 
try, and  it  is  as  a  great  national  question  it  should  be  discussed. 

It  would  be  very  difficult  to  convey  to  the  minds  of  persons  outside  the  Irish  butter 
trade  the  very  low  level  to  which  Irish  butter  has  fallen  in  the  markets  of  Great 
Britain.  Perhaps  its  position  could  not  be  better  illustrated  than  by  stating  that 
in  Dublin,  the  capital  of  Ireland,  the  requirements  of  the  consuming  public  are  al- 
most entirely  catered  for  with  Danish  butter  and  Dutch  butterlne.  One  line  of 
steamers  from  Rotterdam  has  brought  no  less  than  fourteen  thousand  packages  of 
butterine  to  Dublin  since  tbe  1st  of  January,  and  very  large  quantities  manufact- 
ured in  other  countries  have  been  brought  by  other  routes,  the  exact  amount  of  which 
could  not  be  ascertained.  When  this  is  possible  at  a  time  when  the  produce  of  Irish 
dairies  was  being  sold  at  5».  Gd.  per  pound,  and  the  best  at  9<?.,  no  surprise  need  be 
expressed  at  the  exclusion  of  Irish  butter  from  London,  Manchester,  Liverpool,  &c. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  Irish  butter  can  only  be  sold  now  with  very  great  difficulty  in  a  few 
of  the  manufacturing  districts  of  England,  and  the  area  of  its  consumption  is  becom- 
ing more  limited  every  year.  Its  competition  now  is  rather  with  the  produce  of  the 
butterino  factories  than  with  the  butter  shipped  from  France,  Denmark,  Germany, 
and  Sweden.  Butterine  has  realized  a  higher  price  in  the  English  and  Dublin  mar- 
kets for  the  past  twelve  months  than  secondary  grades  of  Irish  butter,  and  the  bulk 
of  Irish  butter,  unfortunately,  is  of  secondary  quality.  The  price  realized  for  Irish 
butter  is  simply  ruinous  for  the  Irish  farmers,  and  with  a  continuance  of  the  existing 
system  of  Irish  dairying,  the  prospect  is  most  disheartening.  It  simply  means  agri- 
cultural ruin,  and  agricultural  ruin  means  national  bankruptcy  for  Ireland.  I  have 
measured  and  do  not  shirk  the  responsibility  of  this  statement.  The  sooner  it  is  rec- 
ognized by  every  one  interested  in  the  welfare  of  this  country  the  better. 

That  there  is  no  natural  impediment  to  Irish  butter  excelling  the  produce  of  all 
other  countries  is  clearly  established  by  Mr.  T.  J.  Clanchy,  of  Cork,  having  obtained 
the  gold  medal  at  the  Paris  Exhibition  of  1878,  and  medals  at  the  exhibitions  of 
Calcutta  and  Melbourne,  from  all  competitors,  with  the  butter  of  selected  Irish 
dairies,  and,  also,  by  the  extreme  high  prices  commanded  on  the  London  market  for 
the  butter  of  one  or  two  factories  established  in  Ireland,  on  the  continental  system, 
by  the  Rev.  Canon  Bagot.  What,  then,  it  will  be  asked,  has  caused  the  decline  of 
the  Irish  butter  trade  ?  I  do  not  hesitate  to  place  the  responsibility  for  it  on  the  neg- 
lect of  our  Government  to  provide  for  tbe  education  of  our  farmers,  as  has  been  done 
by  the  Governments  of  all  those  countries  which  have  excelled  us  in  the  manufacture 
of  butter  for  the  last  thirty  years.  With  paternal  solicitude  they  spared  no  efforts  to 
bring  education  on  dairy -farming  within  the  reach  of  their  agricultural  populations. 
The  success  of  their  efforts  is  evidenced  by  the  prosperity  of  their  dairy  industries, 
as  also  by  the  sad  plight  of  the  Irish  dairy  farmer,  who  has  been  left  unassisted  and 
uneducated  in  the  keen  competition  forced  on  him  by  his  European  and  American 
rivals. 

The  ruin  which  is  now  impending  over  the  dairy  farmers  of  Ireland,  and  the  gen- 
eral agricultural  depression  of  this  country,  is  rebuke  sufficient  for  the  apathy  and 
neglect  the  Government  that  undertakes  to  rule  us  have  exhibited  towards  Ireland's 
best  mterests.  The  Governments  of  the  United  States,  France,  Germany,  Denmark, 

actically  educating  their 
trouble  in  efficiently  dis- 

_    _  ___    .    ne  nothing  for  the  Irish 

farmers.  The  farmers  of  Ireland  had  a  far  stronger  claim  on  the  Government  than 
those  of  any  of  the  countries  above  named.  Because,  owing  to  past  British  legisla- 
tion, they  were  denied  education,  and,  owing  to  the  Irish  land-laws,  they  have  been 
always  kept  on  the  border  of  poverty.  They  were  thus  prevented  from  doing  for 
themselves  what  was  done  for  the  educated  and  prosperous  farmers  of  other  countries 
by  their  respective  Governments.  I  do  not  want  to  introduce  politics,  unnecessarily, 
into  this  statement,  but  it  is  impossible  to  exclude  the  attitude  of  the  Government 
of  Ireland  from  the  discussion  of  a  question  which  so  very  largely  hinges  on  the 
measures  that  have  been  adopted  by  the  Governments  of  those  countries  which  have 
so  successfully  driven  Irish  butter  out  of  the  markets  of  Great  Britain.  Without  the 
assistance  and  education  given  by  the  continental  Governments  their  dairy  farmers 
could  never  have  beaten  Irish  butter  out  of  the  markets.  Up  to  the  time  these  Gov- 
ernments made  dairy  interests  a  state  care,  Irish  butter,  through  force  of  the  superi- 
ority it  derived  from  the  natural  advantage  of  soil  and  climate,  was  highly  prized 
not  alone  in  England  but  in  every  country  penetrated  by  British  commerce.  Year 
by  year,  as  education  improved  the  make  of  butter  in  other  countries,  the  prestige  of 
Irish  sank  lower  and  lower  until  it  has  come  to  that  point  beyond  which  it  cannot 
go  without  extinction. 

Situated,  then,  as  they  are,  through  no  fault  of  their  own,  the  Irish  dairy  farmers  are 
utterly  unable  to  help  themselves  in  this  uneven  struggle  with  the  state-supported  com- 
petition of  other  countries.  Their  ignorance  of  even  what  is  causing  the  depreciation 


THE   UNITED    KINGDOM.  237 

of  their  produce  (as  is  evidenced  by  the  complaints  in  the  Irish  press  against  the  Irish 
butter  merchants),  and  their  utter  inability  through  want  of  capital  to  provide  either  an 
improved  breed  of  dairy  stock  or  the  pro  per  appliances  for  modern  dairying,  make  an 
unassisted  effort  to  maintain  the  struggle  for  existence  a  simple  waste  of  energy.  In 
other  countries  the  resident  nobility  and  gentry  largely  aid  the  schemes  of  Govern- 
ment education  by  maintaining  large  model  dairies  on  their  estate,  where  Govern- 
ment teachers  instruct  the  tenantry,  by  practical  dairy  experiments,  and  by  the  sale 
of  calves  off  these  farms,  the  breed  of  the  best  dairy  stock  is  disseminated  amongst 
the  smaller  dairymen.  By  having  the  center  of  attraction  in  London,  Irish  noblemen 
and  large  landed  proprietors  live  out  of  the  country,  and  even  this  supplemental  as- 
sistance and  education  which  is  given  on  large  estates  on  the  Continent  is  denied  to 
the  Irish  farmer.  Besides  the  large  endowments  given  by  every  State  in  the  Union 
for  agricultural  colleges,  the  American  Government  spent  $4T5,719.26  last  year  in  cir- 
culating knowledge  in  agricultural  matters  amongst  the  wealthy  farmers  of  the  United 
States. 

What  has  been  done,  and  is  being  done  by  European  states  to  promote  scientific 
dairy-farming  has  been  so  often  placed  before  the  public  of  late  that  I  need  not  re- 
capitulate it  here.  A  reference  to  the  United  States  consular  reports  will  reward  the 
inquisitive  on  the  point.  I  have  said  enougiu  to  prove  that  it  is  the  paramount  duty 
of  the  state  Government  to  come  to  the  assistance  of  the  Irish  dairy  farmers,  and  to 
do  so  quickly  if  they  are  to  be  saved  from  annihilation,  and  Ireland  from  overwhelm- 
ing disaster,  the  Government  must  fully  recognize  that  they  alone,  by  neglecting  their 
obvious  duty,  are  responsible  for  the  existing  crisis,  and  half  measures  of  assistance, 
or  feeble  experiments  will  be  of  no  avail.  I  am  not  concerned  with  the  general  agri- 
cultural requirements  of  Ireland,  and  must  therefore  only  confine  myself  to  such  parts 
of  a  general  agricultural  improvement  scheme  as  I  think  imperatively  necessary  for 
the  proper  development  of  the  manufacture  of  Irish  butter.  In  the  United  States  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  at  Washington  looks  after  the  interests  of  agriculture  over 
their  whole  territory  ;  it  is  presided  over  by  a  minister,  assisted  by  a  scientific  staff. 
Each  separate  State,  there,  has  its  own  agricultural  colleges  and  farms. 

I  do  not  think  we  need  go  farther  for  a  model  of  whut  is  wanted  in  Ireland.  We 
want  a  department  of  agriculture  in  Dublin,  whose  duty  (inter  alia)  should  be  to 
direct  a  system  of  dairy  schools  and  farms  in  every  county  to  train  teachers  for  those 
schools ;  to  collect  and  disseminate  information  on  every  subject  connected  with  the 
most  improved  systems  in  other  countries ;  to  import  and  experiment  on  the  best  breed 
of  dairy  cattle,  and  distribute  them  on  the  state  dairy  farms  of  the  counties  for  which 
each  breed  was  best  adapted,  to  provide  Government  loans  to  farmers  for  the  erection 
of  dairy  and  cow  houses,  and  in  every  other  way  to  promote  the  general  dairy  indus- 
try of  the  whole  country.  There  should  be  a  Government  dairy  college  in  every 
county,  and,  to  fulfill  its  mission  properly,  a  farm  of  dimensions  proportionate  to  the 
number  of  pupils,  who,  from  the  agricultural  population,  might  be  expected  to  attend, 
should  be  attached  to  each.  The  scale  of  fees  charged  should  bo  within  the  reach 


a  grant  for  each  dairy  maid  equivalent  to  the  difference  between  the  value  of  her 
work  and  her  expense  on  the  establishment;  she  pays  nothing  for  her  education.  In 
the  Swedish  colleges  the  cost  of  maintaining  a  dairymaid  for  a  year  is  £18,  her  work 
is  valued  at  £7,  and  the  Government  contributes  £11.  The  produce  of  the  dairy 
leaves  the  establishment  a  profit.  In  such  colleges  tho  agricultural  male  pupils  pay 
high  fees.  On  these  Irish  county  farms  a  herd  of  pedigree  bulls  and  cows  should  be 
maintained,  the  former  should  be  available  to  the  farmers  of  the  district  on  payment 
of  a  fee,  and  the  latter  (of  different  breeds)  should  be  experimented  with  to  test  their 
milk  and  butter  producing  capacities  on  the  difierent  kinds  of  pasturage  in  each 
county. 

The  importance  attached  to  this  point  on  the  Continent  may  be  gathered  from  the 
fact  that  there  are  different  staffs  of  Government  professors  employed  for  eight  or  ten 
years  consecutively  examining  with  the  most  accurate  scientific  precision  (even  by 
analysis  of  the  skimmed  milk  and  buttermilk)  the  produce  of  all  the  various  breeds 
of  dairy  stock  on  every  different  section,  BO  as  to  decide  by  what  artificial  foods  the 
pasture  grazing  should  be  supplemented  on  each  farm  to  maintain  a  maximum  butter 
produce.  The  same  scientific  precision  informs  the  farmer  of  each  district  at  what 
temperature  the  dairy-house,  the  cow-house,  the  cellar,  and  even  the  drink  of  the 
cattle  must  be  maintained  for  every  week  of  the  year;  in  the  same  way  he  is  guided 
as  to  comparative  advantages  of  the  dry  tub,  water,  ice,  and  separator  system  of 
obtaining  his  cream,  and  even  to  the  effect  which  the  difference  between  '2,400  and 
2,500  revolutions  per  minute  of  the  separator  will  cause  on  the  quality  of  the  cream, 
I  digressed  to  show  by  what  means  the  perfection  of  dairy  farming  has  been  accom- 
plished on  the  Continent. 

The  total  absence  of  what  may  be  called  any  high-milking  stock  in  Ireland  is  one 
of  the  gravest  features  of  the  situation.  Even  amongst  those  who  go  in  for  keeping 


238  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

very  high-class  cattle  in  Ireland,  the  greatest  attention  has  "been  paid  to  the  strains 
that  produce  most  beef,  at  the  expense  of  the  loss  of  the  milk.  In  other  countries 
they  breed  dairy  stock  for  milk  first  and  beef  afterwards.  They  consider  it  pays 
them  better  to  get  a  high  return  of  butter  for  some  years  and  lose  a  little  on  the  sale 
of  the  cow.  In  a  very  few  years  a  small  herd  of  a  good  strain  of  milkers  on  each  Gov- 
ernment farm  would  disseminate  good  milking  blood  through  the  whole  dairy  stock 
of  Ireland.  At  present,  the  general  run  of  farmers  never  know  what  kind  of  stock 
their  dairy  cows  are  derived  from  ;  they  buy  them  on  chance,  in  fairs  and  markets. 
Some  idea  of  what  may  bo  done  in  the  way  of  breeding  for  milk  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  in  America  particular  strains  of  Jersey  cows  yield  from  90  to  100 
pounds  of  butter  per  month,  and  there  are  authenticated  records  of  cows  yielding  105 
pounds  of  butter  per  month  for  a  season.  Of  course  these  cattle  are  only  fancy 
breeds,  but  it  shows  what  might  be  done  on  Government  farms.  The  particulars  of 
these  records  can  be  found  in  the  Breeders'  Gazette  of  America.  It  is  unnecessary  for 
me  here  to  state  what  should  be  the  training  given  in  such  dairy  schools  to  pupils. 
There  should  be  a  seed- testing  station  attached  to  each,  as  one  of  the  greatest  draw- 
backs to  small  dairy  farmers  in  Ireland  is  the  wretched  class  of  seeds  imposed  on  hirn 
by  unscrupulous  dealers.  I  am  informed  by  practical  farmers  of  great  experience 
that  it  is  owing  to  the  deleterious  adulterations  of  grass  seeds  that  the  increased 
aborting  of  cows  is  mainly  due.  This  source  of  loss  to  the  Irish  dairy  farmer  is  in- 
creasing year  after  year.  It  is  being  anxiously  investigated  by  the  American  Govern- 
ment, and  different  authorities  ascribe  its  spread  to  different  causes.  It  illustrates 
the  necessity  of  having  a  veterinary  as  well  as  a  seed  department  in  each  school. 
Each  of  these  county  establishments  should  be  provided  with  a  traveling  dairy,  and 
its  working,  illustrated  by  a  competent  lecturer,  should  be  exhibited  at  the  large 
fairs  and  other  centers  where  the  agricultural  community  could  be  instructed.  A 
model  dairy  and  permanent  exhibition  of  improved  appliances  might  with  very  great 
advantages  be  established  at  the  Cork  Butter  Market,  where  hundreds  of  farmers 
could  s^  jt  in  operation  every  day.  Dairy  education  must  bo  brought  within  reach 
of  the  larming  masses,  poor  as  well  as  rich.  I  think  elementary  education  on  dairy 
farming  should  form  part  of  the  national  school  system.  Government  should  sup- 
plement the  funds  of  agricultural  societies  to  enable  them  to  offer  attractive  prizes 
for  successful  dairying.  Without  proper  dairy  and  cow  house  accommodation  no 
amount  of  education  would  enable  the  Irish  farmer  to  produce  good  butter.  They 
are  practically  without  one  or  the  other  at  present,  that  is,  as  these  buildings  are  un- 
derstood in  dairy  countries,  on  the  Continent  and  in  America.  Milk,  cream  and  but- 
ter are  most  susceptible  of  taint  from  any  kind  of  bad  odors  or  impure  air.  The  most 
frequent  complaint  against  secondary  Irish  butter  is  its  peaty  or  smoky  flavor.  This 
is  contracted  by  having  the  milk  set, "and  the  butter  made  in  the  ordinary  dwelling 
rooms  of  small  farmers.  Impurities  also  attach  to  the  milk,  owing  to  the  filthy 
condition  of  the  cow  from  bad  stabling.  Therefore  a  model  well-drained  cow-house 
is  of  as  much  importance  as  a  model  dairy.  Loans  on  favorable  terms  should  be  given 
to  the  farmers  to  erect  those  buildings,  and  I  think  it  would  be  well  if  the  Govern- 
ment prepared  model  plans  for  each  class  of  building,  and  insisted  on  their  being  all 
constructed  according  to  those  plans.  The  cost  could  be  fixed  by  scale,  in  proportion 
to  the  number  of  cows  to  be  provided  for.  The  expense  of  obtaining  such  loans 
should  also  be  regulated  by  a  low  fixed  scale.  In  asking  so  much  assistance  from  the 
Government  for  Irish  dairy  farmers,  I  do  not  ask  for  more  for  them  than  has  been 
done  by  other  Governments,  and  I  do  not  see  why  these  county  farms  should  not  be, 
at  least,  self-supporting.  No  scheme  of  improved  dairying  \v  il  1  quite  enable  the  Irish 
farmer  to  compete  favorably  without  extension  of  the  prost*n<  moans  of  transporta- 
tion. Ireland  must  be  opened  up  by  either  tramways  or  .'r.ylit  railways,  and  until 
some  cheaper  and  quicker  means  of  being  able  to  construct  them  than  exists  at  pres- 
ent is  provided  by  legislation,  limiting  and  reducing  the  power  of  factious  opposi- 
tion, this  development  will  be  of  very  slow  growth.  If  the  Government  recognize  the 
strong  claim  the  Irish  dairy  farmers  have  on  them,  and  even  at  the  eleventh  hour 
undertake  to  provide  the  assistance  I  ask  for,  then  there  is  still  ample  room  to  hope 
for  a  speedy  revival  of  the  Irish  butter  trade  and  the  prosperity  of  the  country.  With 
proper  manufacture  Irish  butter  must  lead  the  market,  on  account  of  its  natural  su- 
periority and  flavor.  Of  course  a  great  deal  will  have  to  be  done  by  all  who  have  to 
handle  the  improved  make  of  butter,  so  as  to  put  it  in  the  markets  in  the  most  at- 
tractive shape.  The  packages  must  be  greatly  improved — I  would  recommend  white 
packages,  of  56  pounds,  as  most  likely  to  be  received  favorably.  They  should  be  so 
shaped  that  they  could  not  be  rolled;  thiswould  save  the  butter  from  great  abuse,  and 
keep  the  packages  clean.  I  see  no  reason  why  our  butter  packages  should  not  be 
made  of  beech,  which  grows  in  Ireland  most  abundantly,  and,  which,  consequently, 
would  cost  less  than  imported  oak. 

There  is  an  objection  to  it  on  the  ground  that  butter  does  not  keep  so  well  in  beech 
as  in  oak  casks  for  a  lengthened  period.  In  the  future  there  will  be  no  necessity  to 
keep  butter  any  time  in  casks,  and  prejudices  of  this  kind  should  not  bo  permitted 


THE    UNITED   KINGDOM.  239 

to  interfere  with  the  utilization  of  this  native  timber,  which  is  now  practically  worth- 
less when  grown  in  quantity.  The  most  scientific  butter-producing  countries,  Den- 
mark, Sweden,  Germany,  and  America,  use  nothing  but  beech  packages,  while  we  in 
Ireland,  through  our  ignorance,  send  from  £50,000  to  £100,000,  annually,  out  of  the 
country  for  imported  oak.  In  this  connection,  I  cannot  omit  referring  to  the  very  bad 
treatment  which  Irish  butter  receives  from  both  our  railway  and  steamship  companies. 
They  handle  it  roughly,  which,  of  course,  injures  the  quality,  and  neither  on  their 
platforms,  wharfs,  trucks,  or  steamers,  do  they  make  any  special  provision,  in  the 
simple  matter  of  cleanliness,  for  the  proper  transportation  of  Irish  butter.  The  con- 
sequence is  that  very  often  a  shipper  is  not  able  to  recognize  in  the  begrimed  casks 
delivered  in  London  or  Manchester  the  clean  packages  shipped  at  Cork  or  Waterford. 
In  this  matter  a  great  injustice  is  done  to  Irish  butter.  In  the  local  rates  from  pro- 
ducer to  market,  and  in  the  general  rates  from  Irish  markets  to  the  English  centers, 
Irish  butter  is  very  heavily  handicapped  by  excessive  charges.  Butterine  is  brought 
from  Holland  to  Dublin  at  less  money  than  Cork  butter  could  bo  delivered  in  Dublin. 
Butter  is  .brought  from  New  York  to  Liverpool  at  less  money  than  from  Cork  to  the 
same  port.  It  costs  42s.  (id.  per  ton  to  send  Cork  butter  via  Dublin  to  Bradford,  and 
Danish  butter  is  brought  from  Copenhagen  via  Hull,  Bradford,  and  Liverpool  to  Dublin 
at  '25s.  per  ton.  Tho'lrish  carrying  companies  are  doing  their  best  to  kill  the  Irish 
butter  trade.  I  wish  a  deputation  of  their  traffic  managers  would  visit  France  and 
Holland  to  see  the  delicate  handling  which  butter  receives  from  the  carrying  com- 
panies there,  and  the  scrupulous  cleanliness  of  the  trucks  and  steamers  specially  re- 
served for  butter  traffic.  What  is  wanted  in  Irish  butter  is  cleanliness  in  make,  pack- 
ing, and  transportation,  close  grain,  and  fine  texture,  total  exclusion  of  water,  freedom 
from  oversalting,  even  quality,  even  color,  and  uniformity  of  weight.  I  cannot  con- 
clude this  paper  without  referring  to  the  butterine  trade.  It  would  be  childish  to 
say  that  because  butterine  interferes  with  the  sale  of  butter  therefore  it  ought  bo 
suppressed.  When  manufactured  from  wholesome  ingredients  and  sold  under  its 
proper  designation  it  is  as  legitimate  an  article  of  food  as  any  other.  But  when  the 
trade  is  conducted  as  it  now  is,  most  dishonestly,  it  ceases  to  have  any  claim  to  con- 
siderate treatment.  In  this  week's  issue  of  The  Grocer,  one  of  the  largest  wholesale 
houses  in  London  advertises  to  sell  it  as  finest  Irish  firkins  and  fine  Irish  firkins; 
a  Dutch  firm  offers,  by  circular,  to  make  it  so  as  to  imitate  any  well-known  butter — 
Irish  firkins  and  Irish  roll  being  specially  mentioned.  Every  week's  police  office 
reports  contain  records  of  fines  imposed  for  selling  butterine  as  butter.  In  Dublin 
last  week  several  firms  were  fined  £10  for  selling  Dutch  butterine  as  Irish  roll  butter. 
I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  I  believe  nineteen-twentieths  of  the  butterine  sold 
in  Great  Britain  is  consumed  as  butter.  Irreparable  damage  has  been  done  to  the 
dairy  interests  of  these  countries  by  this  nefarious  trading,  and  Parliament  should 
intervene  to  put  a  stop  to  it.  This  compound  has  no  claim  to  the  name  butterine; 
it  is  adopted  to  deceive  the  public.  This  name  should  be  prohibited.  Let  these  com- 
pounds of  fat  be  called  margarine  or  oleomargarine.  If,  as  they  claim,  the  manufact- 
urers depend  on  its  intrinsic  merits  to  sell  it,  they  need  not  fear  adopting  its  true  desig- 
nation. Every  package  imported  into  the  country  should  have  either  of  those  names 
branded  on  it  in  letters  one  inch  long,  and  also  the  name  or  the  manufacturer  or  his 
trade-mark.  Every  package  issuing  from  a  British  factory  should  comply  with  the 
same  conditions.  Every  shopkeeper  selling  any  quantity  of  these  compounds  should 
be  bound  by  law  to  mention  the  name  of  the  compound  to  the  purchaser.  If  these 
conditions  be  enforced,  with  the  same  penalties  as  they  (or  simillar  provisions)  are  en- 
forced in  other  countries,  no  injustice  will  be  done  to  honest  traders,  and  a  great  act 
of  justice  will  be  done  to  dairy  farmers,  who  have  quite  enough  to  face  in  the  keen 
competition  of  honest  rivalry.  The  existing  powers  of  dealing  with  this  gigantic 
swindling  are  utterly  inadequate.  Unless  from  those  who  are  interested  in  maintain- 
ing fraud,  I  don't  see  where  any  opposition  could  be  given  to  legislation  in  this  direc- 
tion. 


FHAJSTCE. 

J 

, 

CATTLE  BREEDS  OF  FRANCE  AND  THEIR  PRODUCTS. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  WILLIAMS,  OF  ROUEN. 

INTRODUCTORY.  , 

In  compliance  with  the  request  of  the  Department  of  State  to  examine 
and  report  upon  the  subject  mentioned  in  the  cattle  circular  addressed 
to  the  consuls  of  the  United  States  I  have  categorically  answered  the 
questions  therein  propounded  (see  statement  at  close  of  report)  and  will 
attempt  to  render  the  work  more  complete  and  practical  by  such  descrip- 
tions, illustrations,  and  information  as  I  have  been  able  to  obtain  from 
personal  observation  of  the  different  breeds  of  cattle  in  their  original 
homes  and  from  other  reliable  sources. 

This  consulate  embraces  a  large  portion  of  the  ancient  district  of 
Normandy,  is  situated  in  the  northwest  portion  of  France,  and  well 
adapted  by  its  fertility  and  abundant  supply  of  water  for  grazing  pur- 
poses, and  has  long  been  distinguished  for  the  peculiar  and  marked 
type  of  its  cattle  and  horses,  and  affords  a  wide  field  for  the  study  of 
the  races  of  cattle  indigenous  to  France ;  while  its  contiguity  to  Great 
Britain  on  the  one  side,  and  Belgium,  Holland,  and  Germany  on  the 
other,  renders  great  caution  necessary  to  discriminate  between  the 
original  and  mixed  breeds.  We  reserve  the  title  of  distinct  breed  to  a 
number  of  individual  animals  presenting  uniform  characteristics,  shapes, 
and  adaptabilities,  and  capable  of  transmitting  and  perpetuating  this 
type  in  their  progeny.  There  must  be  this  fixity  to  constitute  a  race 

DISTINCT  FRENCH  BREEDS  OF  CATTLE. 

France  appears  to  have  a  substantial  claim  to  eighteen  distinct  breeds' 
of  cattle,  of  which  I  append  a  list,  adopting  the  French  nomenclature: 

(1)  Flamande,  (2)  Normande,  (3)  Bretonne,  (4)  Parthenaise,  (5)  Char-' 
olaise,  (6)  Limousine,  (7)  Mancelle,  (8)  Comtoise,  (9)  Femeline,  (10)  B res- 
sane,  (11)  de  Salers,  (12)  Garonnaise,  (13)  Bazadaise,  (14)  Laudaise, 
(15)  Gasconne,  (16)  Baritone,  (17)  B^arnaise,  (18)  d'Algerie. 

Although  many  other  varieties  of  cattle  are  found  in  France  than 
those  enumerated  above,  I  cannot  view  them  otherwise  than  as  traceable 
to  the  foregoing  parent  stock,  or  the  issue  of  imported  animals,  which 
will  receive  passing  notice  in  considering  the  cattle  of  France. 

The  description  of  a  breed  is  not  easy  to  outline,  but  I  will  endeavor 
to  sketch  the  chief  characteristics  of  a  group  of  which  the  individual 
specimens  present  various  traits. 

FLEMISH  CATTLE. 

Origin. — The  origin  of  this  breed  is  not  precisely  known.    It  is  prob- 
able that  this  race  originated  on  the  shores  of  the  North  Sea,  whence 
came  the  breeds  of  Holland,  Schleswig,  Holsteiu,  and  Jutland,  all  re- 
240 


FRANCE.  241 

markable  for  their  milking  qualities.  The  center  of  production  and 
rearing  of  the  best  specimens  of  the  breed  "Flamande"  is  in  the  de- 
partments of  the  north  of  France,  in  the  rich  pastures  of  Bergues, 
Dunkirk,  Cassel,  Bailleul,  Hazebrouek,  and  Lille. 

We  meet  with  less  numerous  herds,  more  or  less  distinct  arid  pure, 
in  Boulonnais  (termed  Boulounaise),  in  Artois  (Artesienne),  in  the  de- 
partments of  the  Somme,  Oise,  and  Aisne  (there  termed  "Picarde"), 
jpon  the  borders  of  the  Sarnbre  (Maroillaise),  and  about  Bordeaux 
Bordelaise).  The  Bretonne  breed  has  contributed  its  share  to  the 
L  reduction  of  the  latter  variety  of  this  race. 

In  its  original  home  there  are  two  varieties  of  this  breed,  that  of  the 
region  of  Bergues  and  that  of  Cassel. 

The  variety  of  Bergues,  or  Berguenarde,  has  slightly  greater  length 
of  horns,  is  thicker  set,  and  is  adapted  to  fattening  and  yielding  milk. 
It  is  carefully  maintained  for  both  purposes.  The  animals  reared  about 
Cassel  are  finer  and  more  sought  for,  being  preferable  to  those  of  Ber- 
gues for  dairy  purposes. 

Description. — The  Flamande  breed  is  essentially  valuable  for  the 
dairy,  and  incidentally  only  for  food,  and  is  not  adapted  to  work,  and 
is  destined  to  predominate  in  the  dairies  of  the  northeast  of  France. 
I  will  therefore  more  particularly  describe  some  of  the  peculiar  features 
of  the  cow  of  this  breed. 

The  head  of  a  good  cow  is  fine,  of  conical  form,  rather  long;  the 
nape  of  the  neck  thinly  covered  with  hair;  the  horns  wide  apart,  fine 
throughout,  projecting  forward  and  downward,  and  in  such  a  manner 
that  in  some  animals  they  bend  back  and  touch  the  forehead;  they  are 
small,  white  or  yellow,  with  black  tips;  the  ear  is  blunt,  moderately 
large,  and  covered  with  fine  hair ;  the  eyes  projecting  arid  black,  with  a 
mild  expression ;  the  forehead  long,  and  ordinarily  narrow,  terminates 
in  a  snout  slightly  protruding,  of  black  or  mixed  color;  the  neck  long 
and  thin;  the  brisket  is  prominent  and  well  hung;  the  withers,  well 
developed  in  the  best  types  of  Bergues,  are  small  in  ordinary  specimens ; 
the  line  of  the  back  is  straight,  with  a  slight  depression  at  the  junc- 
tion of  the  back  with  the  loins,  due  to  the  separation  of  the  vertebra — 
greater  strength  of  spine  and  loins  would  be  desirable;  the  hips,  often 
protruding,  measure  between  one  another  from  24  to  26  inches ;  the 
uttocks  are  equally  prominent  and  wide  apart;  the  base  of  the  tail  is 
_  w,  sometimes  a  little  raised  by  the  protrusion  of  the  sacrum,  of  which 
the  line  is  not  sufficiently  grounded  with  that  of  the  coccygeal  bones ; 
the  tail  is  fine  and  long,  terminating  in  a.  thin  tuft  of  hair;  the  chest  is 
narrow  and  confined,  and  the  ribs  rather  flat  (the  cattle  raised  in 
Bergues  and  Cassel  have  a  tendency  to  lose  these  defects) ;  the  belly  is 
of  moderate  size,  but  ample  towards  the  flanks  and  mammary  region, 
of  which  the  loins  are  well  developed  and  occasionally  forked ;  the  bag 
large,  round,  often  of  a  brown  or  spotted  color,  and  well  hung ;  the 
teats  are  of  moderate  size,  covered  with  fine  skin  and  soft  hair;  the 
shoulders  rather  flat  and  moderately  muscular ;  the  hoofs  black ;  legs 
flat  and  the  buttocks  sometimes  depressed ;  the  coat  reddish  brown, 
ordinarily  of  deeper  tint  towards  the  head,  and  sometimes  there  ap- 
pears on  the  flanks,  on  the  head,  and  especially  on  the  cheek,  white  or 
speckled  spots,  and  these  are  considered  signs  of  pure  blood.  Many  of 
this  breed  are  found  in  Flanders  of  bright-red  color  or  deep  brown, 
others  roan,  but  the  reddish  brown  is  considered  the  type  of  the  race. 

The  traits  sought  for  by  the  breeders  of  this  race  in  the  cow  are  those 
which  would  indicate  an  aptitude  for  milking,  without  an  inclination 
tor  fattening;  a  certain  harmony  of  form,  a  little  gaunt  rather  than  too 
H.  Ex.  51 16 


242  CATTLE    AND    IDAIItY    FARMING. 

much  rounded;  a  bony,  well  developed  frame,  giving  size  to  the  body  j 
the  hind  quarters  relatively  more  developed  than  the  fore  quarters,'  the 
flanks  large  and  deep,  joined  to  a  good-sized  and  well-hung  bag,  termi- 
nating in  regular  teats,  with  skin  supple  and  soft,  rather  than  too  tine ; 
a  head  with  little  flesh;  a  lively  and  at  the  same  time  soft  expression  of 
the  eye ;  in  short,  all  of  the  well-known  characteristics  which  present 
a  feminine  aspect  to  the  eye  of  an  expert. 

Milking  qualities. — There  are  Flainand  cows  yielding  35  to  40  quarts 
of  milk  per  day.  This  yield  is  quite  exceptional ;  is  only  attained  at  the 
expense  of  the  richness  of  the  milk,  or  to  the  great  injury  of  the  race 
itself.  In  the  Flamand  country  the  average  yield  of  a  good  cow  is 
about  2,640  quarts  per  year,  or  10  quarts  a  day  during  the  season  of 
pasturage  for  two  hundred  and  ten  days,  and  G  quarts  per  day  during 
the  season  of  winter,  and  remaining  dry  for  two  months. 

Weight. — The  weight  of  such  a  cow  is  about  1,000  to  1,200  pounds; 
size  at  the  withers,  53  inches ;  at  the  croup,  55  inches  ;  the  length  from 
the  nape  of  the.  neck  to  the  withers  is  5  feet  3  inches ;  from  the  withers 
to  the  level  of  the  joint  of  the  buttocks,  4  feet  9  inches ;  the  head,  9.7 
inches ;  the  circumference  of  the  body  behind  the  shoulders,  6  feet  3 
inches  ;  the  size  of  the  haunches,*  2  feet  3  inches,  and  the  height  about 
2  feet  G  inches  from  the  ground. 

Flamande  lull. — The  best  breeders  select  the  bulls  of  this  breed  from 
those  contrasting  with  the  cows  and  supplying  the  deficiencies  of  the 
cow,  but  with  a  feminine  appearance,  not  disregarding  the  signs  of  a 
vigorous  constitution.  Thus,  the  preference  is  given  to  bulls  with  a  low- 
hung  body ;  tail,  loins,  and  thighs  muscular.  Experience  has  demon- 
strated the  success  of  this  method  of  improving  the  species. 

It  will  be  noted  that  in  this  description  of  a  race  reared  for  its  lacteal 
qualities  are  certainly  found  many  features  which  would  commend  it  to 
the  butcher,  and  this  view  is  corroborated  by  the  fact  that  these  ani- 
mals are  highly  prized  by  the  consumer.  A  glance  at  the  bull  of  this 
breed  corroborates  this  fact  and  indicates  clearly  the  adaptability  of  the 
race  for  fattening  purposes.  The  color  of  the  coat  is  of  a  deeper  tint 
than  that  of  the  female;  the  head  sizable;  snout  fine,  neck  moderately 
full ;  throat  and  dorsal  muscles  sufficiently  supplied ;  shoulders  rather 
small;  the  body  raised  and  slightly  pointed ;  defects  which  yield  to  good 
treatment. 

The  weight  and  measurement  of  a  bull  of  this  race  aged  thirty  months, 
raised  in  the  department  of  the  north,  I  herewith  subjoin  with  cut. 

TheFlamandox  is  exceptional,  the  females  being  universally  raised; 
the  few  oxen  are  raised  with  a  view  of  exhibiting  at  the  agricultural 
fairs. 

The  Flarnand  ox  has  been  utilized  at  the  beet-root  sugar  manufact- 
ories of  the  north,  and  if  not  subjected  to  severe  labor,  they  fatten  read- 
ily on  the  refuse  of  these  factories. 

BREEDS   OF  SUB-FLAMANDS. 

In  traveling  on  one  side  from  Dunkirk  to  Boulogne,  Montreuil,  and 
Abbeville,  and  on  the  other  toward  Arras,  by  the  way  of  Saint  Omer, 
we  find  modifications  in  the  race  Flamande.  In  the* former  place  the 
name  of  "  Boulonnaise "  is  given  to  the  subrace  and  that  of  "Arte's- 
ienne"  to  that  in  the  ancient  province  of  Artois,  although  these  two 
subraces  are  frequently  confounded  with  the  mother  race.  The  subrace 
"  Boulonnaise"  is  of  smaller  size  and  less  weight,  its  shape  more  slender 
and  angular,  while  the  belly  and  flanks  are  more  fully  developed,  the 


.    : 


T 

i 


FRANCE.  243 

croup  and  loins  large  and  lean,  the  udder  large,  indicating  good  milk- 
ing, the  hair  equally  red  or  reddish  brown,  and  the  body  nearer  the 
ground.  The  quality  of  the  pasturage  and  the  care  have  great  effect 
upon  the  shape  and  size  of  the  different  species. 

The  cattle  buyers  give  the  name  of  "  Bourn aisieuue  "  to  the  "  Boulou- 
naise"  raised  about  Desvres,  Sainer,  Huequeliers,  and  Fruges,  small 
districts  formerly  known  under  the  name  of  "  Boumais."  Under  this 
head  is  found  the  "  Namponnoise,"  the  variety  u  Boulonnaise  "  of  the 
arrondissement  of  Montreuil  as  well  as  of  the  valley  of  Authie,  derived 
from  Nanpont,  a  village  situated  at  some  distance  from  the  mouth  of 
this  river,  Toward  Boulogne,  Marquise,  and'  Calais,  the  race  is  larger 
and  becomes  identified  with  the  pure  Flamand. 

The  subrace  Artesienne,  more  generally  wholly  confined  to  pastur- 
age, which  often  becomes  scanty,  is  less  developed  than  the  cows  of 
Bergues,  and  even  of  Saint  Orner,  is  more  slender  and  smaller,  but  its 
constitution  is  less  lymphatic.  The  breeder  of  these  excellent  cattle  is 
reluctant  to  cross  them  with  any  other,  and  fears  to  impair  their  milking 
qualities,  which  have  not  been  improved  by  crossing  with  the  Durham, 
and  their  adaptation  to  fattening  is  unnecessary  to  develop.  It  is  said 
that  heifers  of  this  breed  occasionally  become  so  fat  as  to  remain  sterile. 

This  race  includes  about  one  million  or  more,  which  number  is  increas- 
ing, constituting  about  one-twelfth  of  the  entire  cattle  of  France,  and 
of  this  number  four-fifths  are  found  in  the  eight  departments  of  France, 
beginning  at  the  north  and  comprising  the  adjoining  districts.  The 
price  of  these  cattle  range  from  $130  to  $175,  according  to  age,  weight, 
&c,;  some  animals  bring  $200,  and  even  more.  Bulls  of  this  breed  are  in 
constant  demand  from  Holland  and  Belgium. 

THE  NORMANDY  BREED. 

The  origin  of  the  Norman  breed  seems  unknown,  in  fact  has  never 
been  traced.  It  is^considered  that  the  nature  of  the  soil  has  produced 
the  breed.  It  seems  to  have  changed  very  little  in  the  last  century  and 
is  very  remarkable.  The  center  of  production  of  this  fine  breed  is  com- 
prised in  the  departments  of  Eure,  Manche,  Calvados,  and  Orne. 

DISTINCTIVE  CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  NORMANDY  BREED. 

The  distinctive  character  of  this  breed  is  an  unprepossessing  bony 
frame,  long  and  heavy  head,  largo  snout,  a  large  mouth,  such  as  is  found 
in  animals  of  large  appetite  ;  sleek  horns,  often  short  and  twisted  for- 
ward towards  the  forehead ;  body  long,  backbone  presenting  bony  pro- 
tuberances and  depressions  in  the  cows  advanced  in  age ;  neck  rela- 
tively strong  ;  shoulders  muscular;  breast  rather  deep,  often  contracted; 
belly  large;  flank  large  and  hollow;  hips  ordinarily  slightly  spread  by 
corpulence;  croup  small;  rump  slightly  developed;  hind  part  narrow, 
but  with  well-developed  and  well-formed  bag,  and  ordinarily  the  signs 
of  good  milking ;  limbs  short;  skin  thick  and  hard,  showing  signs  of 
slow  growth ;  coat  variable  as  to  color,  brown,  roan,  and  red,  or  piebald ; 
never  fails  to  present  brown  streaks  scattered  over  the  surface  of  the 
body.  This  has  given  rise  to  the  term  "  brindled." 


VARIETIES  OF  THE  NORMANDY  BREED. 

This  breed  has  varieties  more  or  less  distinct.    In  Contentin  and 
essin, 
lognes, 


Bessin,  which  extends  from  Cherbourg  and  Lisieux,  comprising  Va- 
j,  Carentau,  and  Isigny.  a  country  which  is  celebrated  for  its  but- 


244  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

ter,  the  race  takes  the  name  of  "Coteutine,"  and  is  remarkable  for  its 
lacteal  qualities.  It  is  called  the  "race  Augeronne"  when  it  is  found  in 
the  valleys  of  Auge,  whence  the  large  cattle  for  the  Paris  market  are 
largely  supplied.  "  They  give  the  name  of  "Augeron,"  however,  to  all 
domestic  animals  of  that  region.  They  say  "Augeron  horses,"  "  Angeron 
hogs  and  sheep."  I  have  been  thus  particular  to  explain,  as  buyers 
might  be  unnecessarily  confused. 

THE  MILKINO  QUALITIES  OF  THE  NORMANDY  BREED. 

The  claim  is  made  for  this  breed,  and  especially  those  denominated 
"  Cotentine,"  that  they  were  the  first  milking  race  in  the  world.  How- 
ever this  may  be,  it  is  incontestable  that  they  possess  admirable  milk- 
ing qualities.  We  meet  with  cows  all  over  Normandy  which  give  35 
quarts  in  twenty- four  hours,  and  they  have  been  known  to  produce  50 
quarts.  The  average  yield  of  milk  is  about  3,000  quarts  per  year,  or 
about  the  same  as  that  for  the  Flam  and  race.  Unfortunately  it  is  a 
fact  well  recognized  by  dairymen  that  the  production  of  milk  is  an  in- 
verse proportion  to  its  richness  or  capability  of  furnishing  butter,  and 
it  has  been  stated  that  32  quarts  of  milk  from  a  cow  of  the  JSTormandy 
breed  produced  but  2£  pounds  of  butter  (1  kilogram),  while  it  is  calcu- 
lated that  from  25  to  27  quarts  of  milk  would  suffice  ordinarily  to  make 
the  same  amount  of  butter.  The  English  allow  9  quarts,  if  the  cream 
and  milk  are  beaten  together,  for  a  pound,  and  13  quarts  if  the  cream 
alone  is  churned. 

But  only  a  limited  confidence  can  be  placed  in  the  above  figures,  as 
the  richness  of  the  milk  varies  not  only  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
cow,  but  also  is  greatly  influenced  by  numerous  circumstances,  such  as 
the  food,  the  gestation  more  or  less  advanced,  &c.  It  is  admitted  by 
scientists  that  the  cows  which  furnish  the  most  milk  do  not  give  the 
most  butter ;  but,  as  far  as  I  am  able  to  inform  myself,  the  variety  Co- 
tentiue,  of  the  Norman  breed,  is  an  exception  to  this  rule,  and  produces 
an  abundance  of  milk,  and  this  inilk  yields  relatively  a  quantity  of  un- 
exceptionable milk. 

ISIGNY  BUTTER. 

The  butter  of  Isigny  is  undeniably  as  good  as  the  world  produces. 
Seven  and  a  half  millions  of  pounds  of  butter  of  Isigny  is  annually  con- 
sumed at  Paris.  If  a  calculation  was  based  on  35  or  even  27  quarts  per 
kilogram  (2J  pounds),  the  production  of  milk  would  be  fabulous  for  so 
small  a  district.  However,  this  is  not  a  sure  test,  as  all  the  butter  called 
"  Isiguy  "  is  not  made  there.  The  conclusion  that  the  butter  of  Isigny 
is  better  than  any  other  in  the  world  is  an  affair  of  patriotism,  for  we 
find  the  "Flamande"  lauded  in  the  same  manner;  the  Hollanders  say 
the  same  of  the  race  Hollandaise,  the  Swiss  of  their  admirable  races 
Switz,  Fribourgoise,  and  Bernoise. 

The  reputation  is,  however,  merited  in  this  case,  and  proceeds  from 
three  distinct  causes — the  stock,  the  excellent  grass,  and  skill  and  care 
in  making  the  butter. 

The  Normand  cow  is  found  all  over  France,  and  often  furnishes  only 
fair  butter  elsewhere. 

THE  NORMANDY  AS  MEAT  CATTLE. 

The  race  Normande  furnishes  many  of  the  largest  animals  for  the 
Paris  market,  notably  an  ox  of  six  years  weighing  1,970  kilograms 
(4,335  pounds),  but  it  only  returned  2,197^  pounds  of  net  meat  and  125 


FRANCE.  245 

kilograms  (275  pounds)  of  fat.  Another  of  these  monstrous  animals 
weighed  4,185  pounds,  and  measured  2m  45cm,  or  8  feet,  at  the  withers, 
and  2m  97cm,  or  9  feet  9  inches,  from  the  head  to  the  base  of  the  tail. 

Their  comparative  aptitude  for  work  is  very  slight,  a  small  pair  of 
Gascon,  Batidois,  or  de  Salers  oxen  would  soon  tire  out  these  huge  Co- 
tentines. 

The  meat  of  this  breed  is  highly  esteemed  in  regard  to  quality,  but 
the  small  proportion  of  net  weight  of  meat  and  the  great  proportion  of 
bone  (of  make  weight)  is  quite  striking.  Many  attempts  have  been 
made  to  overcome  this  difficulty  without  interfering  with  the  extraor- 
dinary milking  qualities  of  the  breed,  but  with  very  indifferent  success, 
and  the  breeders  rest  content  with  the  oxen  which  they  have,  knowing 
that  in  the  best  dairy  races  the  ox  is  secondary. 

THE  DURHAM-SCHWITZ-NORMAND. 

There  seems  no  good  reason  why  the  cross  of  the  type  de  Schwitz, 
which  has  been  frequently  tried,  should  improve  the  breed.  In  the 
opinion  of  Norman  breeders  the  race  Cotentine  is  the  best  for  milk  to 
be  found  in  Europe,  the  race  Scwitz  could  not  improve  it  in  that  re- 
spect, and  it  is  not  wonderful  in  its  product  of  meat. 

This  half-breed  has  been  again  crossed  with  the  Durham,  and  given 
rise  to  a  new  race,  termed  the  "Durham-Schwitz-Normand." 

Many  rather  remarkable  specimens  of  this  type  have  been  exhibited. 
Their  characters  were  those  of  the  Durham,  with  less  fineness  of  bone 
and  skin.  This  new  race  seems  to  have  no  advantage  over  the  cross- 
breed of  the  Durham  and  Normand.  The  amelioration  of  the  race 
Normande,  in  view  of  its  chief  aptitude,  can  only  be  obtained  by  selec- 
tion. 

THE  BRITTANY  BREED. 

The  race  Bretonne  occupies  nearly  exclusively  the  five  departments 
which  are  comprised  in  the  ancient  province  of  Bretagne,  consisting  of 
the  departments  C6tes-du-Nord,  Finistere,  Morbihan,  Loire  Inferieure, 
Ille-et-Vilaine.  Bretagne  possesses  only  one  race  of  cattle,  the  race 
Bretonne — strange  coincidence  in  France,  where  each  province  num- 
bers many  breeds  among  its  stock  of  cattle.  This  breed,  is  very  nu- 
merous and  contains  about  1,500,000  head  of  cattle,  or  about  one-eighth 
of  all  the  cattle  of  France. 

It  presents  varied  developments  according  to  the  fertility  and  culti- 
vation of  the  soil  where  it  is  found,  but  everywhere  is  found  some  type 
that  indicates  its  origin  from  the  department  of  Morbihan. 

Origin. — Various  origins  are  given,  to  the  race,  such  as  that  it  is  a 
degradation  of  the  race  Hollandaise ;  that  it  came  from  the  Indies,  on 
account  of  its  similarity  to  the  milch  cows  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bor- 
deaux, which  are  supposed  to  have  had  such  an  origin,  &c.  The  best 
authorities,  however,  agree  that  the  race  Bordelaise,  as  this  race  is 
termed  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bordeaux,  and  which  resemble  the  Hol- 
landaise race,  is  nothing  but  the  race  Bretonne  more  developed  by 
means  of  more  abundant  and  substantial  food. 

Characteristics. — The  ancient  race  Bretonne  is  pie-black  or  black  in 
color.  The  cow  may  be  described  as  having  a  black  snout,  sometimes 
mottled,  rarely  white,  while  the  membrane  which  surrounds  the  tongue 
is  always  white,  which  is  distinguishing  mark.  Taken  altogether  the 
animals  of  this  breed  would  be  classed  as  follows :  Thick  set,  often 
found  measuring  at  the  withers  from  3  feet  2  inches  to  3  feet  6  inches  5 


246  CATTLE  AND  DAlKY  FARMING. 


eye  bright  ;  head  short,  fine,  and  small  $  horns  ordinarily  fine  and  white 
at  the  base,  are  black  at  the  extremities,  varying,  however,  and  are 
sometimes  black  or  yellow,  or  entirely  black  throughout,  which  latter 
type  of  horns  is  greatly  esteemed  ;  they  also  vary  in  length  and  size, 
the  shorthorns  being  preferred.  This  cow  is  long  from  the  shoulder  to 
the  buttocks  compared  with  its  height,  and  has  short  and  small  neck  and 
little  ears,  the  head  perfectly  detached  ;  little  or  no  dewlap  is  noticea- 
ble ;  the  withers  and  back  are  on  the  same  line  ;  some  have  these  parts 
large,  but  they  are  often  projecting  ;  above  all,  the  mammillary  veins 
are  large  and  flexible,  and  no  French  race  presents  more  marked  type 
of  good  milkers. 

CARE  OF  CATTLE  IN  BRITTANY. 

This  race  is  so  neglected  in  its  home  that  it  might  be  almost  said  to 
provide  for  itself.  The  bulls  are  few  and  young  and  the  cows  are 
brought  to  the  nearest. 

These  cows  have  no  especial  care  ;  during  the  winter  they  have  some 
hay  or  straw  given  them  in  the  morning,  before  they  are  sent  out  upon 
znaaeer  pastures  to  obtain  the  complement  of  their  rations;  while  ex- 
posed to  coid  for  isauy  hours,  they  receive  scarcely  enough  sustenance 
to  preserve  life.  It  is  from  this  eanse  that  the  breed  is  in  such  a  lean 
condition,  while  it  is  proof  positive  that  its  native  qualities  must  be 
very  substantial  to  bear  up  under  such  treatment. 

The  ox  of  this  breed  passes  through  many  hands  usually  before  he 
reaches  the  butcher.  His  first  owner  usually  keeps  him  until  he  is  about 
two  and  a  half  years  old,  then  sells  him  to  another,  who  works  him  for 
about  the  same  length  of  time.  At  the  age  of  five  to  six  years  this  lean 
animal  is  .sold  to  another,  who  endeavors  for  about  two  months  to  put 
him  in  flesh,  and  then  he  passes  into  the  hands  of  a  fourth,  and  not  un- 
frequently  to  a  fifth,  before  he  is  ready  for  his  last  trip,  which  is  to  the 
fair.  It  would  be  difficult  to  push  division  of  labor  farther. 

In  their  home  it  is  rare  to  find  these  cattle  in  good  condition,  but  this 
is  a  necessary  consequence  of  scanty  food  ;  but  careful  observation  shows 
that  the  bony  system  is  slightly  developed,  and  that  they  can  be  readily 
and  profitably  fattened.  The  weight  of  the  cow  of  this  breed  is  from 
330  to  440  pounds,  and  an  ox  from  550  to  770  pounds. 

THE  BRITTANY  COW  AS  A  MILKER. 

The  average  quantity  of  milk  is  from  1,460  liters  to  1,825  liters  (1,542 
to  1,928  quarts)  ;  that  is  to  say,  an  average  of  from  4  to  5  liters  (4^  to 
5|  quarts)  per  day.  Considering  the  size  of  the  animal,  its  usual  scanty 
fare,  it  must  be  considered  as  a  good  return.  The  farmers  of  Morbihan, 
when  asked  whether  their  cows  are  good,  reply,  "  This  one  gives  4 
pounds,  that  one  G  pounds,  and  the  other  7  pounds."  They  mean  that 
such  a  cow  gives  such  an  amount  of  butter  per  week. 

IMPROVEMENT  OF   THE  BRITTANY  BREED. 

The  attempt  has  been  made  to  improve  this  breed  by  crossing  with 
the  Durham  and  Ayrshire  ;  the  result  in  the  former  case  was  good,  in- 
creasing the  weight  and  precocity  of  the  animal,  but  without  an  equally 
naPPy  result  in  regard  to  milking  qualities  5  while  the  product  in  the 
latter  case  resulted  only  in  producing  a  less  quiet  race,  of  a  little  larger 
size  and  not  as  good  for  milk. 

The  only  remedy  seems  to  be  in  selection,  and  the  amelioration 
of  this  breed  seems  closely  connected  with  the  agricultural  amelioration 


- 


FKANCE.  247 

of  the  land.  It  is  incontestable  that  the  race  Bretonne  is  the  most  quiet 
and  hardy  of  all  known  races,  can  content  itself  on  less  while  giving  a 
relatively  high  return.  It  is  calculated  that  a  cow  of  this  breed  will 
give  a  pound  of  milk  rich  in  butter  for  each  pound  of  hay  consumed  5 
there  is  no  other  which  will  yield  a  like  quantity  with  less  than  from 
two  to  three  times  the  quantity  of  food.  Again,  we  must  consider  that 
this  rich  milk  is  produced  under  circumstances  where  others  would 
starve.  It  has  been  justly  styled  the  "  race  Bretonne/'  useful  to  the  rich 
and  the  providence  of  the  poor. 

THE  PARTHENAISE  BREED. 

The  name  of  "  race  Parthenaise  "  is  applied  to  designate  the  different 
varieties  of  a  perfectly  homogeneous  breed  found  upon  the  shores  of 
the  ocean  from  the.  mouth  of  the  Loire  to  that  of  the  Gironde. 

These  varieties  assume  different  names  in  different  localities,  and 
present  modifications  peculiar  to  the  nature  of  the  soil,  treatment,  and 
other  economical  conditions,  without  altering  the  general  character- 
istics of  the  race. 

In  the  Loire  Inferieure  they  are  called  "race  Nantaise;"  in  Poitou, 
"race  Poite vine ; "  in  the  neighborhood  of  Cholet, " Choletaise ; "  "  Ven- 
deeune"  in  the  Vende ;  u  Gatinaise"  or  "Bocage"  in  the  country  known 
under  the  name  of  Gatine  or  Bocage ;  and,  lastly,  "  Maraichine"  on  the 
shores  of  the  ocean  and  the  marshes  of  Saintonge.  But  the  parent 
stock  is  that  raised  in  Bocage,  an  extension  of  the  granite  reef  which 
forms  the  greater  part  of  the  peninsular  of  Bretagne,  extending  along 
Bocage  and  the  most  wooded  parts  of  the  west. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OP  THE  PARTHENAISE  BREED. 

The  breed  of  Parthenay  has  a  large  and  flat  forehead,  short  head,  the 
chaufrein  straight  and  snout  large ;  the  horns  are  long  and  tapering, 
white  at  the  base  and  black  at  the  extremities ;  the  neck  is  short  and 
muscular,  the  dewlap  of  moderate  size,  a  little  thick ;  shoulders  long  and 
muscular;  withers  long  and  low;  chest  deep;  ribs  often  flat  and  low; 
line  of  the  back  straight;  loins  large;  haunches  wide  apart;  croup 
horizontal  and  well  furnished  with  muscles ;  tail  deep  set ;  thighs  well 
muscled  and  straight ;  form  nearly  a  square  with  the  projection  of  the 
haunches ;  limbs  are  short  but  strong,  at  the  joints  large,  but  very 
straight.  The  animals  of  this  breed  are  heavy,  slow,  but  tenacious, 
robust,  and  good  workers.  The  ordinary  size  varies  from  5  feet  9  inches 
to  5  feet  11  inches.  When  fattened  they  readily  attain  1,100  pounds, 
live  weight.  Their  skin  is  nearly  as  fine  and  soft  as  that  of  the  little 
race  Bretonne,  and  indicates  their  aptitude  for  fattening.  The  only 
color  admitted  for  these  animals  is  yellowish  brown,  slighly  varied,  as 
it  is  sometimes  paler,  and  again  approaches  claret  color.  The  young 
animals  at  birth  are  brown,  which  changes  as  they  develop  into  a  lighter 
tint. 

THE  PARTHENAISE  AS  MILKERS  AND  MEAT  CATTLE. 

The  cattle  of  this  breed,  under  the  names  of  "Choletins,"  "ISTantais," 
or  "  Parthenais,"  contribute  largely  to  the  supply  of  the  city  of  Paris, 
and  vary  in  weight,  according  to  age,  &c.,  from  1,750  to  2,250  pounds. 

The  race  is  not  precocious,  but  at  the  abattoirs  of  Paris  butchers  told 
me  that  they  preferred  them  to  the  more  precocious  breeds.  The  cows 


248  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

of  this  breed  are  smaller  in  size.  The  cows  in  some  parts  are  consigned 
entirely  to  the  duties  of  maternity,  and  the  least  possible  amount  for 
the  use  of  the  household  is  alone  taken  from  it.  There  are  found,  how- 
ever, among  them  some  good  milkers,  notably  of  the  variety  Maraichine. 
The  net  returns  of  the  product  of  meat  are  more  than  average ;  the 
quality  is  fine,  and  the  capacity  for  work  constitute  this  race  among 
the  first  rank  of  the  French  breeds. 

THE  CHAROLAISE  BREED. 

The  race  Charolaise  is  justly  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  impor- 
tant races  of  France.  It  is  precocious,  vigorous  in  work,  and  excellent 
for  meat.  The  cow  has  never  been  remarkable  for  its  milking  qualities. 
The  name  given  to  this  breed  of  "  Charolais"  or  u  Nivernais-Charolais" 
is  identified  with  the  name  of  the  place  of  its  origin,  and  "Nivernais" 
perpetuates  the  name  of  the  department  where  this  race  to-day  has  its 
center  of  development,  and  where  the  finishing  touches  have  been  put 
upon  it. 

The  Charolais  has  been  termed  the  Durham  of  the  French  race,  and 
it  has  in  a  less  developed  degree  the  prominent  characteristics  of  that 
breed,  so  that  a  description  of  that  well-known  breed  would  answer  for 
this  one.  The  same  lightness  of  head,  fine  skin,  large  haunches,  straight 
line  of  back,  and  short  legs  are  found  in  the  one  as  in  the  other.  In  the 
Durham,  however,  the  bones  are  small,  the  legs  are  slim,  and  the  ani- 
mal is  totally  unfit  for  work,  while  the  Charolais,  of  firmer  bones  and 
strong  legs,  is  well  fitted  for  the  work.  The  Charolais,  is  at  the  same 
time  suitable  for  work  and  valuable  for  the  butcher.  Finally,  the 
Durham  demands  abundant  and  substantial  nourishment  and  perma- 
nent stabling,  while  the  Charolais,  in  contrast,  is  far  more  hardy,  lives 
and  thrives  upon  herbage,  and  is  only  stabled  during  the  most  inclement 
portion  of  the  season.  ^Nevertheless  there  exists  an  affinity  between 
these  two  races  which  assures  success  in  crossing  them,  but  only  in  in- 
creased precocity  in  fattening. 

The  breeding  with  Herefords  proved  a  failure,  injuring  their  qualities 
for  work,  and  rendering  them  more  exacting  in  quality  and  quantity 
of  food,  and  on  the  whole  less  robust.  A  constitution  of  resisting  conta- 
gious diseases  is  peculiar  to  this  breed.  The  cows  fatten  more  readily 
than  the  oxen.  These  cattle  are  brought  into  this  region  in  large  num- 
bers to  fit  for  the  butcher. 

THE  LIMOUSINE  BREED. 

Those  who  have  examined  the  race  Limousine  in  Limousin  attest  the 
wonderful  change  that  intelligently  directed  care  has  effected  in  the 
amelioration  of  this  breed.  At  the  recent  fair  at  Paris,  where  I  counted 
47  cattle  of  this  breed  among  a  total  of  332,  they  compared  favorably 
with  any  on  exhibition,  and  the  butchers  said  that  the  net  returns  of 
meat  were  very  large,  being  from  66  to  69  per  cent. 

The  Limousines  of  the  mountains  are,  on  the  contrary,  of  small  size, 
hardy,  and  yield  at  the  abattoirs  only  moderate  returns.  It  is  said  of 
the  cattle,  as  of  the  inhabitants,  that  destiny  impels  them  to  emigrate. 
Emigration  has  caused  the  improvement.  The  Limousin  ox  has  a  yellow 
coat,  paler  on  the  inner  side  of  the  limbs ;  large  yellow  horns,  which 
describe  a  semicircle ;  large,  bright,  mild  eyes ;  moderate-sized  head, 
the  neck  well  proportioned  to  the  rest  of  the  body,  the  dewlaps  falling 
nearly  to  the  ground  5  haunches  well  formed ;  flank  low  5  thighs  round ; 


Of 


FRANCE.  249 

sbiu  large;  good  foot;  good  gait  and  easy  movement.  Their  docility 
is  very  great  and  highly  prized.  They  walk  slowly  and  husband  their 
strength  while  they  do  their  work.  The  cow  is  much  smaller  than  the 
ox,  and  is  remarkably  feminine  and  very  fine  in  limbs.  The  head  is  ex- 
pressive. She  has  great  energy  and  works  more  briskly  than  the  ox, 
but  lacks  his  endurance. 

The  difference  of  size  between  the  ox  and  cow  of  this  breed  is  easily 
explained  by  reasons  which  I  gave  above.  The  cow  remains  in  her  home 
in  her  original  state,  while  the  young  ox  at  the  age  of  twelve  or  fifteen 
months  is  taken  into  the  rich  and  highly  cultivated  portions  of  the  coun- 
try. He  receives  "better  and  more  substantial  food ;  his  native  qualities 
are  developed ;  the  animal  grows  and  thrives  under  the  better  surround- 
ings. The  mild  treatment  and  painstaking  of  the  driver  insures  the 
docility  of  the  oxen.  They  are  seldom  strained ;  and  as  the  farmer  ex- 
pects the  greatest  return  from  the  growth  and  increase  of  weight  of  his 
cattle,  it  is  not  unusual  to  see  a  cart  drawn  by  three  or  four  pairs  of 
oxen  which  could  be  moved  by  one  pair. 

The  cows  work  in  their  homes  in  the  mountains,  and  are  able  to  turn 
up  the  light  soil  upon  which  are  raised  rye  and  buckwheat.  She  is  only 
a  moderate  milker,  not  equal  to  those  of  the  breed  de  Salers,  occupy- 
ing the  neighboring  mountains.  Some  attempts  have  been  made  to 
improve  this  breed  by  crossing  with  the  Durham,  the  Charolais,  and 
Gascon.  The  result. of  the  former  was  generally  good,  but  less  aptitude 
for  work,  and  with  'the  others  occasioned  loss  of  that  docility  which  is 
of  great  value  to  the  pure  breed. 

THE  MANCELLE  BREED. 

The  race  Mancelle  is  destined  to  disappear.  The  pure  breed  is  only 
found  among  some  poor  farmers,  and  then  of  an  inferior  type.  It  is 
difficult  to  study  the  pure  breed,  and  scarcely  interesting  or  instruct- 
ive. I  have  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  cut  of  this  race.  Although  capa- 
ble of  work,  they  are  rather  classed  as  ordinary  workers.  The  Norman 
graziers  said  that  they  often  turned  them  into  their  pastures  long  after 
the  others,  but  they  were  the  soonest  fitted  for  the  market  of  the  capi- 
tal. 

A  short  cut  was  discovered  to  utilize  this  race  by  developing  it  and 
at  the  same  time  exterminating  it,  or  rather  substituting  for  it  a  su- 
perior breed. 

The  early  attempts  to  introduce  the  Durham  blood  to  ameliorate  this 
race  were  so  successful,  and  the  transformation  so  great,  that  it  may  be 
considered  as  a  great  stride  in  advancing  the  value  of  French  cattle. 
The  "Durham-Manceaux,"  as  this  breed  is  termed,  has  increased  the 
precocity  and  propensity  for  fattening  to  a  degree  (as  claimed  by  many) 
of  superiority  to  all  other  cattle  of  native  or  crossed  breeds.  However 
this  may  be,  from  the  study  of  these  animals,  which  were  very  numer- 
ous at  the  recent  annual  exhibition  of  animals  for  the  butchery,  as  well 
as  among  the  most  successful  breeders  and  fatteners  of  cattle,  the  fusion 
of  these  two  bloods  has  produced  excellent  results,  such  as  increased 
precocity,  lighter  bones,  more  developed  fleshy  parts,  fuller  chest,  while 
diminishing  the  belly  and  rendering  the  ribs  more  cylindrical ;  the  neck 
becomes  shortened  and  the  head  finer.  The  Durham  blood  can  also  be 
successfully  renewed  in  the  Durham-Maneeaux,  and  with  such  happy 
results  and  direct  proof  as  the  list  of  prizes  taken  by  these  cattle  for 
many  years  attest. 

The  returns  of  net  meat  from  the  Durham-Manceaux  is  large,  vary- 
ing from  65  to  72  per  cent.,  weight  from  2,100  to  2,400  pounds,  at  three 


250  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

years  ten  months  of  age.    The  Durham-Manceaux  must  be  considered 
one  of  the  most  valuable  breeds  which  France  possesses  for  food. 

THE   COMTOISE  BREED. 

Among  the  many  mixed  races  of  the  northeast  of  France  is  found  a 
fixed  and  numerous  breed  named  the  "  race  Comtoise."  These  have 
three  different  varieties,  known  as  "Tourache,'7  "Femeline,"  and  "Bres- 
sane." They  occupy  the  mountainous  parts  of  the  east  of  France,  from 
the  Vosges  to  the  Alps,  the  valleys  of  the  basin  of  the  Saoue,  and  the 
department  of  Aiu. 

The  variety  Tourache  tends  to  disappear.  Its  continual  mixture 
with  the  Swiss  races  serves  daily  to  efface  the  type  more  and  more. 
The  proprietors  of  the  rich  pasturages  of  the  Jura  have  long  been  in 
the  habit  of  loaning  to  the  Swiss  4,000  to  5,000  cows  for  the  summer 
season,  at  $10  per  head.  This  periodical  emigration  has  been  the  means 
of  infusing  much  Swiss  blood  into  the  pure  breed.  This  renders  the 
study  of  this  variety  useless.  In  the  local  fairs  the  three  varieties  are 
classed  together  as  Comtoise,  although,  for  reasons  shown  above,  the 
Tourache  is  fast  disappearing;  the  Bressano  is  formed  of  variable 
elements ;  the  Femeline  alone  presents  a  satisfactory  type  of  a  face. 

THE  FEMELINE  BREED. 

The  race  Feineliiie  has  a  light  brown  coat,  head  small  and  narrow, 
eyes  set  near  the  horns,  soft  and  mild  air,  fine  horns,  slim  neck,  small 
ears,  small  dewlap,  fine  limbs,  the  ribs  well  rounded,  bones  sufficiently 
light,  skin  thin  and  loose  at  the  shoulder,  which  indicates  an  aptitude 
for  fattening.  The  Femeline  ox  is  docile,  quick  in  his  movements,  has 
a  fair  aptness  for  fattening,  and  is  a  favorite  with  the  butchers. 

The  husbandman  keeps  his  oxen  till  seven  or  eight  years  of  age, 
then  puts  them  in  the  stables  for  three  or  four  months,  and  partially 
fattens  them  by  feeding  them  with  the  after-grass,  potatoes,  and  turnips, 
cooked  and  mixed  with  rye  flour,  maize,  and  even  with  wheat  of  in- 
ferior quality,  diluted  in  water;  he  also  gives  them  some  rape-seed 
cakes.  He  then  sells  them  to  drovers,  who  supply  Lyons,  Cote  d'Or, 
and  even  Paris.  The  figures  of  these  annual  sales  are  from  8,000  to 
10,000  animals,  at  an  average  price  of  about  $80  per  head.  Their 
weight  is  from  660  to  880  pounds,  and  the  percentage  of  net  meat 
often  rises  to  60.  Although  a  good  breed  and  superior  in  milking  quali- 
ties to  the  Charolaise,  the  latter  scarcely  giving  enough  to  sustain 
its  calf,  the  ox  Femeline  cannot  be  compared  to  the  Charolaise,  with  or 
without  the  Durham  mixture,  for  in  the  Durham-Charolaise  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  ascertain  where  the  blood  of  the  Durham  begins  and  that  of  the 
Charolais  ends. 

The  variety  Bressane  is  a  coarse  specimen  of  the  race  Comtoise  5 
has  its  merits  as  an  excellent  animal  for  work,  and  when  even  quite 
old,  before  it  is  fattened,  is  still  sought  for  by  the  butchers,  its  flesh 
being  very  savory  and  esteemed  in  the  market  of  Lyons. 

In  the  annual  exhibitions  of  France  this  variety  Bressane  has  often 
taken  the  prizes,  and  I  herewith  insert  a  cut  of  one  of  these  prize 
animals. 

THE  BALERS  BREED. 

The  race  de  Salers  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  France.  It  has  always 
been  held  in  good  repute.  This  breed  presents  the  three  qualifications 
desired,  but  seldom  united  in  the  same  animal — aptness  for  work  and 


X 


n 


FRANCE.  251 

fattening  joined  to  good  milking  qualities.  Besides,  it  is  intelligent 
and  docile.  Briefly  described,  it  is  from  4  feet  2  inches  to  4  feet  6  inches 
size;  live  weight,  1,750  to  2,250  pounds;  fine,  soft,  shiny  coat,  generally 
red,  without  spots;  fine,  supple  skin,  loose  from  the  ribs;  long,  slim 
horns,  ordinarily  white,  wide  apart,  shooting  upwards  and  backwards 
toward  the  end;  short  head;  large  forehead ;  bright,  mild  eye;  good-sized 
neck;  dewlap  is  moderate;  shoulders  strong  and  chest  well  developed; 
limbs  muscular,  fairly  strong ;  are  lusty,  vigorous,  and  straight,  so  formed 
as  to  insure  a  brisk  gait ;  the  Salers  is  often  observed  trotting  like  a 
horse ;  his  body  is  thick-set  and  his  belly  well  developed.  The  name  is 
derived  from  the  little  city  of  Salers,  district  of  Mauriac,  situated  in  the 
midst  of  the  mountains  of  Gantal. 

Although  they  occupy  a  small  territory,  they  manage  to  export  many 
of  these  cattle.  The  oxen  are  first  sold  to  the  neighboring  departments 
for  work,  and  finally  they  are  sold  to  those  who  fatten  them  and  thence 
to  Paris.  The  cows  emigrate  south  and  are  sought  for  dairy  purposes. 
At  the  recent  fair  for  animals  for  food  at  Paris  the  race  de  Salers, 
as  usual,  was  well  represented.  Many  of  these  cattle  attain  great  weight, 
at  the  age  of  five  years  often  running  from  2,000  to  2,700  pounds. 

The  heifers,  as  remarked,  are  sold  to  the  south  of  France,  enough  only 
being  reserved  to  replace  the  superannuated  cows  of  the  dairy;  others, 
again,  are  sold  in  pairs  for  working  cows. 

DAIRYING  ON  THE   CANTAL  MOUNTAINS. 

A  dairy  in  this  part  of  France  consists  of  about  35  cows,  varying 
however  from  20  to  100  cows  each.  A  certain  amount  of  mountain  past- 
urage is  required  for  this  dairy.  These  domains  upon  the  mountains 
contain  800  acres  or  more  and  pasture  several  dairies.  The  milk  is  made 

'into  cheese — at  home  in  the  spring  and  fall,  when  the  cows  are  on  the 
farms,  and  on  the  mountains  when  the  cows  repair  there  during  the 
summer.  The  mountain  is  utilized  as  a  pasture  as  long  as  possible ; 
then  the  cows  descend  to  the  farm  and  live  upon  the  late  vegetation. 
This  devoured,  they  go  into  winter  quarters  in  the  stables.  The  past- 
urage of  the  mountains  is  gauged  by  the  number  of  head  it  can  feed. 
They  say  a  mountain  of  40,  50,  or  100  head,  to  express  that  the  same 
number  of  cows  or  their  equivalent  can  be  kept  during  a  certain  time. 

.A  three-year-old  ox  or  cow  or  2  yearlings  represent  a  head;  three  animals 
of  two  years  old  represent  a  head;  a  mare  and  colt  represent  two 
head.  The  young  calves  with  the  cows  are  not  counted.  This  compu- 
tation is  admitted  and  has  the  sanction  of  the  law  in  case  of  dispute. 
The  area  per  head  upon  the  mountains  of  Salers,  where  the  herbage  is 
thick  and  richj  is  lj-  acres ;  another  claims  it  requires  2J  acres  and  even 
more  per  head.  The  cost  of  this  mountain  pasturage  is  from  $6  to  $8  per 
head  for  the  season.  In  Auvergne,  and  especially  Salers,  these  mount- 
ains are  carefully  tended,  and  are  watered  as  well  as  possible.  They 
spread  the  cattle  droppings  and  break  down  the  mole-hills,  and  close  a 
certain  portion  each  year.  When  required,  drainage  is  employed,  and 
the  pasture  is  never  too  closely  fed.  The  herdsmen  lead  the  cows  to  a 
dry  place  for  rest  at  night,  and  these  places  are  changed  every  few  days. 
Portions  of  the  pasture  well-sprinkled  and  cared  for  afford  great  relief 
to  the  cows,  which  are  driven  two  or  three  times  each  day. 

The  cows  ascend  the  mountain  on  the  26th  May;  this  is  fixed  and 
would  require  a  convention  to  change.  Their  time  of  departure  de- 
pends upon  how  much  food  is  at  the  farm  ;  the  1st  of  October  is  about 
the  usual  time  of  descent  to  the  farm.  Compared  with  the  Flamandes 


252  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

and  Normandes  cows,  which  give  2,500  quarts  of  milk  per  year,  the  cow 
of  the  Salers  is  rated  as  a  moderate  milker ;  but  this  inferiority  does 

11  ot  apply  to  the  whole  race,  for  in  Auvergne,  as  in  Normandy,  and  in  the 
north,  we  find  cows  which  give  3,000  quarts. 

The  average  of  the  dairies  of  Auvergne  is  at  1,500  quarts,  or  there- 
about, per  head.  This  is  less  than  with  the  two  before-mentioned  races, 
but  the  difference  is  equally  great  in  the  consumption  of  food.  Indeed, 
in  Cantal  the  annual  food  of  a  cow  consists  of  grass  in  pasture  for  eight 
months  of  the  year,  and  18  or  20  pounds  of  hay  for  the  rest  of  the  time, 
while  in  No* mandy  and  the  north  the  cows  are  always  gorged  to  reple- 
tion with  a  variety  of  food,  and  at  a  cost  of  three  times  that  of  the  cows 
of  Cautal,  so  that  for  the  same  amount  of  food  the  cow  of  Salers  gives 
a  greater  return  of  milk.  The  milk  of  the  cow  of  Salers  is  very  rich 
and  well  adapted  to  making  cheese. 

CANTAL  CHEESE. 

Cheese-making  is  general  and  well  managed  in  the  mountains  of  Au- 
vergne. This  cheese  is  known  throughout  France  as  "  Cantal  cheese." 
Its  manufacture  is  so  simple  that  I  have  ventured  to  insert  it. 

The  milk  is  curdled  by  pressure  in  large  vats,  without  skimming. 
The  curd  is  then  strained  through  a  straining  bag  of  white  bolting  cloth, 
kneaded,  salted,  and  pressed.  The  whey,  still  containing  some  particles 
of  butter  and  cheese,  is  mixed  with  milk,  which  causes  the  cream  to  rise. 
From  this  butter  is  churned.  The  cheesy  particles  remaining  after  the 
churning  are  utilized  for  making  a  common  cheese,  consumed  in  the 
locality.  The  whey  remaining  after  the  last  process,  not  being  consid- 
ered too  rich,  is  given  to  the  hogs.  A  Salers  cow  produces  from  8  to 

12  quarts  of  milk  per  day,  while  an  occasional  one  is  found  giving  25 
quarts.    About  11,000,000  pounds  of  cheese  are  annually  made  in  this, 
region,  an  average  of  about  410  pounds  per  cow.    The  best  dairies  turn 
out  440  pounds  per  head,  inferior  ones  220  pounds.    In  the  spring  it 
requires  1,000  to  1,100  quarts  of  milk  for  100  kilograms  (220  pounds,  of 
cheese,  but  as  the  season  advances  the  richness  of  the  milk  in  cheese 
increases.    In  the  fall  it  again  requires  600  quarts  of  milk  for  100  kilo- 
grams (220  pounds)  of  cheese.    An  average  for  the  year  would  be  about 
the  latter  figure.    This  same  milk  produces  besides  from  15  J  to  18  pounds 
of  butter.    This  cheese  is  sold  to  the  merchants  at  about  10  cents  per 
pound.    This  price  corresponds  to  about  6J  cents  per  quart  for  milk. 
In  Normandy  and  the  north  the  milk  of  which  the  butter  is  made  gives 
only  a  return  of  about  4  cents  per  quart. 

This  difference  of  price  probably  indicates  the  difference  in  the  qual- 
ity of  the  milk  of  the  two  breeds.  This  cheese  is  mostly  consumed  in 
Limousin  and  the  south  of  France,  and,  though  not  sought  for  by  the 
epicures,  is  palatable  and  nourishing.  It  is  claimed  that  the  "  race  de 
Salers 7?  is  less  important  in  a  dairy  point  of  view  than  in  furnishing 
working  cattle  and  food. 

THE   SALERS  CROSS-BREEDS. 

The  cross-breeding  has  been  tried  with  the  English  races  of  Durham, 
Devon,  the  Scotch  breed  of  West  Highland,  and  the  Swiss  races.  The 
animals  of  the  cross-breed  of  the  Durham  at  the  late  exhibition  at  Paris 
indicated  a  slightly  greater  precocity,  but  the  general  verdict  of  those 
who  have  carefully  examined  the  subject  is  that  the  crossing  has  not 
ameliorated  the  race,  ar  I  that  this  can  only  be  effected  by  a  careful 
selection  of  breeding  animals  taken  from  the^admirable  race  itself. 


FRANCE.  253 

RACE  D>  AUBRAC. 

Although  I  have  not  so  classified  it,  it  seems  proper  that  the  race 
d'Aubrac,  having  the  fixed  characteristics  of  a  distinct  race,  and  although 
neighbor  to  the  race  de  Salers  and  bearing  a  resemblance  to  that  race, 
should  not  be  confounded  with  it.  One  of  the  most  marked  peculiari- 
ties of  this  breed  consists  in  its  short  legs,  out  of  proportion  to  its  long, 
thick  body,  characteristic,  however,  of  all  the  animals  of  this  region,  not 
excepting  the  human  race.  The  race  d7  Aubrac  has  a  good  head,  fair 
size,  the  snout  long  and  large,  strong  horns,  gracefully  turned  and 
twisted  and  of  moderate  length. 

The  d'Aubrac  cow  has  a  handsome  velvety  coat  and  flexible  skin, 
the  chest  large,  the  back  flat,  the  bones  of  the  haunches  rounded  and 
slightly  prominent.  The  color  of  the  coat  is  rarely  simple,  but  mixed 
with  clouded  tints.  The  ordinary  colors  are  fawn,  hare  tint  or  badger, 
and  soot  black,  mixed  with  black  and  gray. 

The  ox  of  this  breed  attains  its  growth  very  slowly.  This  is  not 
surprising,  considering  how  those  animals  intended  exclusively  for  work 
are  brought  up.  But  this  want  of  precocity  does  not  apply  to  all  of  the 
race,  since  some  magnificent  Aubrac  cattle  evince  remarkable  precocity. 
To  obtain  this  condition  the  animal  must  be  well  fed  from  the  time  that 
it  is  weaned. 

DAIRYING  IN  AVEYRON. 

The  cow  of  Aubrac,  like  those  of  most  of  the  southern  breeds,  is 
smaller  than  the  male.  It  is  not  a  great  milker,  under  favorable  cir- 
cumstances giving  but  9  or  10  quarts  of  milk  per  day.  The  cheese- 
making  is  nevertheless  extensively  carried  on  in  these  mountainous 
regions.  The  cheese  is  deemed  superior  to  that  of  Holland,  but  will 
not  keep  so  long,  as  the  whey  is  more  carefully  removed  from  the  latter. 

The  same  establishment  of  mountain  dairies  as  found  in  Salers  exists 
iii  Aveyron.  Each  dairy  of  one  hundred  cows  has  a  head  of  the  cheese- 
house,  to  whom  $24  is  paid ;  a  boy  especially  in  charge  of  the  calves, 
at  half  price;  three  herdsmen,  at  $16  each,  which  makes  a  total  of  $84 
wages  for  a  herd  of  one  hundred  cows.  The  wages  are  paid  at  the  end 
of  the  season,  out  of  the  product.  These  employes  are  fed  on  milk,  rye 
bread,  and  salt  bacon ;  this  food  is  estimated  at  $28.  The  capital  of 
an  establishment  of  this  kind  is  about  $200,  besides1  shifting  fences  for 
inclosing  the  cattle  at  night,  and  dairy  utensils  and  cheese  on  hand, 
which  never  exceed  $100.  The  average  yield  of  an  Aubrac  cow  is  140 
pounds  cheese  and  7  pounds  butter. 

THE  AUBRAC  MEAT-OX. 

The  butcher's  stall  is  the  end  of  the  ox  of  Aubrac,  as  of  all  the  rest  of 
the  oxen  in  the  world,  but  as  a  working  animal  he  gives  a  good  profit 
for  his  keeping,  and  it  therefore  does  not  detract  from  his  value  that  he 
attains  his  growth  slowly. 

THE  AUBRAC   CROSS-BREEDS. 

With  this  race,  as  with  that  of  the  Salers,  the  crossing  with  other 
breeds  has  not  improved  it,  except  in  regard  to  precocity,  and  as  the 
animal  more  than  pays  his  way,  it  seems  no  object  to  obtain  this  pre- 
cocity at  the  expense  of  diminishing  his  usefulness  as  a  worker. 


254  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

THE   GARONNE  BREED. 

The  race  Agenaise,  or  Garonnaise,  is  found  in  tlie  valley  of  the  Ga- 
ronne, between  Toulouse  and  Bordeaux,  an  extent  of  about  60  leagues. 

This  is  one  of  the  finest,  largest,  and  strongest  breeds  of  France,  and 
well  adapted  to  the  portion  of  the  country  which  it  occupies. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  GARONNAISE. 

The  oxen  of  this  breed  measure  5  feet  8  inches  at  the  withers,  and 
even  more,  and  weigh  2,300  pounds,  while  the  cows  only  measure  4  feet  8 
inches  and  weigh  770  pounds.  This  race  is  not  faultless,  being  consid- 
ered as  having  the  brisket  contracted  behind  the  shoulders,  the  horns 
long  and  pointed  towards  the  ground,  and  the  back  hollow.  This  latter 
is,  however,  partially  overcome  in  some  animals. 

FEEDING  IN  THE   GARONNE. 

The  animals  of  the  high  land  are  fed  with  a  certain  parsimony,  while 
a  model  style  of  food  is  provided  for  those  in  the  valleys.  A  constant 
succession  of  artificial  forage,  fresh  and  green,  is  afforded  from  15th 
March  to  the  15th  of  November.  From  the- 15th  of  March  to  the  15th 
of  April  green  rye  is  fed  and  mixed  with  cut  straw.  This  grain,  sown 
in  October  on  a  well  manured  soil,  furnishes  at  the  end  of  winter  a  nour- 
ishing and  healthy  food.  From  the  15th  of  April  to  the  1st  of  May, 
before  the  blossoming,  barley  sown  in  November  and  later  is  fed.  From 
the  1st  of  May  to  the  15th  of  June  these  grasses  are  replaced  by  dry 
fodder;  red  clover,  green  and  dry,  constitutes  a  portion  of  their  food. 

From  the  15th  of  August,  for  the  clover,  a  mixture  of  vetches  and  oats, 
sown  at  intervals,  affords  refreshing  nourishment  during  the  extremely 
heated  season.  Towards  the  middle  of  August  the  corn  fodder  is 
ready  and  lasts  till  the  middle  of  November.  The  corn  is  sown  in  the 
spring  upon  the  same  ground  from  which  the  rye  and  barley  had  been 
cut  in  the  spring.  Eleven-fortieths  of  an  acre  sown  in  corn  will  support 
two  cows  for  two  months.  This  crop  is  valued  at  $3  to  $3.50.  The 
leaves  and  seeds  of  millet  are  utilized.  These  are  carefully  gathered, 
and  if  the  other  fodder  is  sufficient,  are  not  drawn  upon  till  winter. 
During  the  four  months  of  winter  the  main  dependence  is  upon  red 
clover,  the  Holland  clover  straw,  and  hay ;  but  few  roots  are  cultivated 
in  this  part  of  France  for  fodder. 

THE  GARONNAIS  OX. 

The  Garonnais  ox,  of  large  and  solid  build,  is  not  only  used  before  the 
carts  of  the  country,  but  can  be  seen  at  Bordeaux  slowly  trailing  heavily 
laden  carts  for  the  loading  and  discharge  of  vessels. 

In  the  way  of  fattening  and  early  maturity  the  ox  merits  attention. 
At  the  recent  Paris  exhibition  many  could  be  seen  which  were  precocious 
and  of  good  size,  giving  good  returns  of  meat  in  regard  to  quality  and 
quantity. 

THE  GARONNAIS   CROSS-BREEDS. 

A  single  cross-breed  Garonnais,  being  Limousin-Garonnais,  was  ex- 
hibited and  appeared  well.  There  appears  no  good  reason  why  these 
races,  both  remarkable  for  working  and  meat,  should  not  assimilate 
readily.  The  best  accredited  opinion  is  that  the  Durham  race  is  descended 


FRANCE.  255 

from  the  Holland  breed,  but  some  claim  is  made  that  it  came  from  the 
race  Garonnaise,  a  large  number  of  which  were  exported  to  England. 
However  this  may  be,  there  is  some  foundation  in  the  precocity  of  the 
race,  which  does  not  equal  that  of  the  Durham ;  but  the  aim  is  attended 
with  success  to  improve  this  race,  and,  like  the  Charolais,  Garonnais, 
and  the  Durham-Manceaux,  to  rival  the  Durham  in  returns  of  meat, 
without  impairing  their  working  capacity. 

CENSUS  OF  THE  GARONNAIS. 

The  number  of  this  breed  occupying  the  vast  and  fertile  valley  of  the 
Garonne  is  about  400,000  head,  spread  over  4,200,000  acres  of  land.  The 
number  of  these  animals  is  increasing  and  their  condition  sensibly  im- 
proved from  year  to  year. 

THE   BAZADAISE  BREED. 

On  approaching  the  railway  station  at  Laugon,  between  Bordeaux 
and  Bay  on  lie,  we  invariably  see  in  the  summer  small  clumsy  carts,  with 
low  wheels,  laden  with  pine  wood,  and  drawn  by  animals  which  we 
recognize  with  difficulty,  on  account  of  their  droll  trappings,  as  oxen. 

The  head,  quite  large,  appears  larger  in  consequence  of  a  species  of 
head-gea*  made  of  sheep-skin,  which  entirely  protects  it  and  shades  it 
from  the  sun  in  that  warm  latitude.  A  sort  of  shirt  of  coarse  cloth 
covers  closely  and  protects  the  animal  against  the  bites  of  flies  and 
other  insects.  This  curious  clothing  and  intelligent  care  evince  the 
proper  and  just  appreciation  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Landes  toward 
the  beasts  which  serve  and  feed  them.  There  is  no  occasion  there  for 
a  society  for  the  protection  of  animals. 

This  race  derives  its  name  from  that  of  the  charming  little  city  of 
Bazas,  in  the  extremity  of  the  department  of  the  Gironde.  The  soil 
about  Bazas  is  more  fertile  than  that  in  the  districts  of  Mont-de-Marsau 
and  Dux,  which  explains  the  difference  between  the  two  neighboring 
races,  the  race  Bazadaise  and  the  race  Landaise,  although  these 
races  have  many  points  of  resemblance.  The  oxen  are  often  submitted 
to  long  journeys  over  paved  roads,  attached  to  heavy  carts.  They  toil 
along  these  dusty  roads  under  a  burning  sun,  and  bear  up  well  under 
it.  The  ox-driver  takes  the  best  possible  care  of  his  cattle,  and  never 
strikes  them.  They  march  along  at  their  ease;  he  excites  them  by 
words,  speeches,  and  even  pleasantries,  and  a  particular  song,  on  hear- 
ing which  the  ox  redoubles  his  efforts. 

Farmers  and  butchers  at  Bordeaux  and  Paris  are  unanimous  in  their 
praises  of  this  breed.  The  superiority  of  the  flesh  of  the  Limousins 
and  Salers  is  attributable  to  the  fact  that  these  breeds  are  usually 
worked  very  lightly,  or  about  enough  to  pay  for  their  feed,  while  the 
Bazadais  does  not  only  agricultural  but  commercial  work.  At  the 
south  the  cows  are  worked  more  than  the  oxen  by  the  farmers.  The 
horse  of  the  Landes  is  small,  light,  delicate,  excitable,  fiery,  indefatiga- 
ble in  running  about  the  country,  but  incapable  of  working  the  land  or 
carrying  heavy  loads.  Breton  or  Boulonnais  horses,  if  substituted,  ac- 
customed to  good,  rich  food,  would  be  expensive.  Oxen  are  more  con- 
venient, economical,  and  therefore  in  general  use.  The  ox,  however, 
fattens  easily,  and  gives  a  good  return  of  60  per  cent,  or  more. 

There  have  been  few  attempts  to  cross  this  race,  while  great  strides 
have  been  made  in  their  amelioration  by 'selection. 


256  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

THE  LANDALSE  BREED. 

I  liave  said  that  the  race  Bazadaise  is  often  confounded  with  the 
race  Landaise.  It  is  often  crossed  thus,  but  without  any  advantage, 
and  tending  to  attenuate  the  proportions  of  the  animal.  The  raceLau- 
daise,  like  the  Bazadaise,  is  found  in  the  department  of  the  Landes,  and 
is  also  subjected  to  hard  work.  Agriculture  is  rude  in  that  department. 
The  animals  subsist  upon  scanty,  hard  grass.  During  the  winter  the 
working  cattle  are  fed  upon  hay,  the  others  upon  wheat,  straw,  and 
corn-stalks.  On  many  farr^s  the  cattle  are  fed  by  hand.  Many  wickets 
are  placed  in  the  wall  of  the  house  which  opens  upon  the  court,  sur- 
rounded by  sheds  and  stalls,  where  the  animal  is  free.  By  these  wickets 
the  members  of  the  family  in  turn  give  mouthful  after  mouthful  of  food 
to  the  animals,  and  with  wonderful  patience  and  economy  place  every 
mouthful  of  food  in  the  very  gullet  of  the  animal,  thus  prevented  from 
rejecting  it.  They  are  often  tempted  by  the  sight  of  a  green  leaf,  or 
some  appetizing  hay  tea,  or  a  bit  of  turnip,  but  these  appearances  are 
often  deceitful,  and  the  poor  beast  is  only  offered  some  dry  straw  which 
had  been  untouched  in  his  rack  and  should  have  served  for  a  bed. 

This  method  of  taking  care  of  an  animal  takes  much  time,  and  makes 
a  great  inroad  into  the  night  of  the  workman,  whose  entire  day  is  taken 
up  in  the  fields  ;  but  it  is  astonishing  with  how  little  feed,  of " the  most 
ordinary  kind,  the  animals  subjected  to  heavy  and  incessant  labor  can 
be  kept  in  good  condition. 

The  cows,  much  smaller  than  the  oxen,  are  subjected  to  hard  work, 
while  they  nourish  their  calves  without  receiving  any  additional  nour- 
ishment themselves. 

LANDAISE  BULL-RACES. 

The  agility  of  these  animals  is  extraordinary:  they  take  a  trot  with- 
out being  blown.  They  are  often  sent  on  long  routes  and  make  45  to 
50  miles  in  twenty-four  hours,  and  in  making  these  distances  they  do 
not  stop  for  rest.  At  the  fairs  in  the  Landes  the  agility  of  these  ani- 
mals is  often  exhibited;  the  bulls  rarely  figure  in  these  games,  although 
they  are  termed  "bull-races."  The  oxen  and  cows  ordinarily  take  part 
in  these  games.  These  are  less  exciting  than  bull-fights,  but  the  great- 
est enthusiasm  is  evinced  by  the  crowd,  and  the  same  agility  and  au- 
dacity on  the  part  of  the  actors,  who  evince  a  curious  knowledge  of  the 
ways  of  the  animal,  to  whom  they  openly  oppose  themselves  without  any 
other  defense  than  the  rapidity  of  getting  out  of  his  way.  The  skillful 
athlete,  with  a  cigarette  in  his  mouth,  makes  a  slight  movement  when 
the  bull  advances  towards  him  with  his  head  lowered;  the  horns  graze 
his  breast,  but  he  has  closely  calculated  the  distance.  As  the  infuriated 
animal  rushes  upon  him,  with  his  head  lowered  to  strike  him,  he  coolly 
places  a  foot  between  his  horns,  and,  aided  by  the  upward  movement  of 
the  animal's  head,  safely  springs  behind  him.  This  is  not  always  ac- 
complished without  accident,  but  precaution  in  the  way  of  cords  usually 
prevent  any  unpleasant  episodes. 

THE  LANDAISE  AS  A  MEAT   CATTLE. 

The  race  Landaise  has  an  established  reputation  at  the  annual  fairs 
of  fat  cattle  in  France.  Upon  a  hardy  race,  badly  fed  in  its  home,  as 
are  the  Laudais,  increased  food  works  wonders ;  if  to  this  is  added  a 
selection  of  breeding  animals  you  are  sure  to  arrive  at  the  utmost  rel- 
ative perfection  of  the  race.  This  race,  while  strongly  framed  for  work, 


FRANCE.  257 

has  a  small,  bony  structure,  qualifying  it  for  taking  flesh.  Tuio  peculiar 
bony  structure  belongs  to  the  race  therefore  it  has  been  demonstrated; 
that  if  these  animals  are  well  fed  from  their  birth,  they  will  at  an  early 
age  return  good  profit  for  their  keeping  for  the  sole  purpose  of  food. 

THE   GASCON  BREED. 

All  agree  that  the  race  Gasconne  is  especially  adapted  to  work.  Its 
prominent  features  are  briskness  and  force  for  work.  It  is  principally 
found  in  the  department  of  Gers,  a  very  broken  country,  where  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  hills  is  difficult  and  laborious.  Its  powers  are  hero  put 
to  constant  proof.  Its  faults  are  those  of  a  race  given  up  to  work  en- 
tirely, and  that  of  the  hardest  kind.  The  oxen  are  worked  until  they 
are  twelve  to  fifteen  years  old,  and  then  fitted  as  well  as  may  be  for  the 
butcher. 

Compared  with  the  races  Bazadaise  and  Garonnaiso  it  has  many 
traits  in  common.  The  race  Gasconno  is  slower  and  more  clumsy,  but 
more  vigorous,  stiff  at  work,  like  the  soil  it  cultivates.  The  Garonnaiso 
is  more  precocious.  The  race  Bazadaise  is  more  lively,  better  adapted 
to  the  light  soil  that  it  dwells  upon,  and  above  all  to  the  fatigue  of 
long  journeys,  which  it  bears  astonishingly.  The  cows  of  this  breed 
are  more  in  number  than  the  oxen  and  are  submitted  to  very  rough 
work.  They  are  poor  milkers,  scarcely  affording  nourishment  for  their 
calves. 

In  that  part  of  France  they  cook  with  oil  arid  fat,  and  there  is  little 
demand  for  butter.  Those  who  wish  for  milk  buy  the  little  Bretonnes 
which  are  found  in  great  numbers  in  the  Pyr6u6cs,  and  from  Bordeaux 
to  the  eastern  limits  of  the  Biscayan  country. 

There  are  numerous  subraces,  considered  distinct,  notedly  those  com- 
ing under  the  head  of  Ari6ge,  but  they  would  scarcely  interest  those 
studying  the  French  races  from  an  American  point  of  view. 

CATTLE  OF  THE  PYRENEES. 

Although  it  is  admitted  that  there  are  many  varieties,  known  as  "  Bas- 
quaise,"  "Baretone,"  "Landaise,"  they  resemble  one  another  so  closely 
that  it  would  simplify  matters  much  to  generalize  them  as  "races  des 
Pyr6ndes"  or  races  of  the  Pyrenees.  Like  all  the  mountain  races,  these 
increase  in  size  when  taken  to  fertile  plains.  They  are  not  very  great 
milkers,  but  there  are  found  exceptional  cows  which  give  a  fair  average, 
but  they  are  more  or  less  uniformly  good  workers^  and  can  be  fattened 
fairly  after  their  days  for  labor  are  over. 

ALGERIAN  CATTLE. 

The  race  of  Algiers  is  not  very  generally  known,  but  as  stock- 
raisers  send  yearly  a  large  number  of  cattle  to  Marseilles,  as  well  as  the 
interior  of  France,  a  brief  sketch  of  this  race  might  not  be  out  of  place. 

The  coat  is  generally  brown  or  mauve,  sometimes  drab  or  chestnut, 
more  or  less  mottled,  seldom  clear.  Its  girth  varies  from  3  feet  9 inches 
to  4  feet  5  inches.  The  smaller  animals  are  found  in  the  mountains,  the 
larger  in  the  richer  valleys. 

Characteristics.  —Frame  rather  large  than  small ;  head  wants  fineness, 

without  being  exactly  heavy  and  large ;  limbs  large  and  firmly  attached ; 

horns  large  and  colored,  their  direction  upwards  and  circular ;  body 

short,  thick  and  round;  withers  thick ;  sides  well  arched;  chest  fair 

H.  Ex.  51 17 


258  OATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

size ;  dewlap  prominent ;  flank  short ;  skin  smooth,  but  rather  thick 
than  fine ;  step  light  and  aspect  lively ;  very  tractable  and  of  good  dis- 
position. On  the  whole,  this  description  pictures  an  animal  without 
many  faults.  The  ox  is  a  good  worker,  tough,  energetic,  and  only  needs 
size  and  weight. 

Care  and  handling. — It  is  said  of  them  that  they  live  and  thrive 
where  European  breeds  would  languish  and  die,  submitted  to  the  same 
fare. 

In  the  spring  they  have  abundant  feed,  but  during  the  rest  of  the 
year  they  live  upon  dry  herbage,  sunburnt  or  injured  by  the  heavy 
dust,  while  for  drink  they  only  have  an  insufficient  quantity  of  brackish 
water.  Such  is  the  carelessness  of  the  Arabs  that  they  fail  to  provide 
forage  for  the  winter,  although  the  snow  sometimes  covers  the  earth 
for  fifteen  consecutive  days.  They  do  not  attempt  to  protect  the  cattle 
from  the  cold  of  winter  or  from  the  excessive  heat  of  summer,  and  the 
cattle,  submitted  to  all  the  vicissitudes  of  a  variable  climate  like  that  of 
Algiers,  endure  a  deprivation  of  food  more  or  less  complete  for  nine 
months  of  the  year.  It  is  not  astonishing,  therefore,  that  the  mortality 
of  these  cattle  is  great. 

The  Algerian  cow  as  a  milker. — The  Algerian  cow  is  a  poor  milker } 
gives  scarcely  milk  enough  to  nourish  her  calf,  which  the  Arab  woman 
tries  to  take  from  her  for  the  household.  Only  one  of  the  four  teats  is 
allowed  for  the  calf.  If  this  cow  is  a  poor  milker,  as  an  offset  its  milk 
is  rich.  The  Arabs  drink  it  fresh  or  sour,  and  make  butter  and  cheese 
by  a  barbarous  process,  a  description  of  which  would  not  be  instructive. 
This  race  has  been  crossed  with  the  Schwitz,  a  native  of  the  center  of 
Switzerland,  with  happy  results,  adding  to  the  size  and  improving  the 
milking  qualities.-  Submitted  to  a  good  liberal  regimen  they  have  ex- 
cited attention  and  admiration,  and  have  yielded  as  high  as  69  per  cent, 
net  meat.  In  1878  42,250  Algerian  cattle  were  imported  into  France. 

MISCELLANEOUS  BREEDS. 

This  article  might  be  extended  to  an  indefinite  length  if  attempt 
were  made  to  include  many  of  other  breeds  and  subbreeds,  such  as  the 
race  Tarentaise ;  the  breed  of  the  Black  Mountain,  termed  "  race  de 
la  Montague  noir ; "  the  race  du  Gevaudau,  found  in  the  department  of 
Herault,  of  small  size,  but  said  to  be  as  old  as  poverty.  I  have  en- 
deavored to  call  attention  to  the  more  prominent  breeds  of  cattle  as 
seen  in  their  homes,  and  describing  their  surroundings,  solely  in  the 
hope  of  guiding  the  intelligent  breeder  in  his  search  for  the  type  of  cat- 
tle best  adapted  to  the  locality  and  the  ends  which  he  proposes  to  ac- 
complish by  importing  the  same. 

STATISTICS  OF  LA  VILETTE,  THE  PARIS  ABATTOIR. 

All  of  the  large  cities  of  France  are  supplied  with  abattoirs,  or 
slaughter-houses.  The  celebrated  La  Vilette,  of  Paris,  combines  the 
advantages  of  a  cattle  market  with  a  slaughter-house ;  has  ample  ac- 
commodations for  housing  5,000  or  6,000  head  of  cattle,  besides  calves 
and  sheep.  About  5,000  head  of  oxen  are  slaughtered  here  weekly,  in 
addition  to  the  other  animals.  Upwards  of  1,000  men  are  employed 
here,  and  the  streets  are- paved. 

There  are  64  large  buildings,  some  for  the  doomed  cattle  and  others 
used  as  slaughter-houses.  Fountains  and  tanks  abound.  These  build- 
ings cover  about  67  acres,  and  the  whole  presents- the  appearance  of  a 


FEANCE. 


259 


miniature  city.  The  details  of  the  entire  process,  from  the  time  that  the 
animal  arrives  in  Paris  until  the  product  of  meat  reaches  the  consumer 
and  the  remainder  is  utilized,  although  an  interesting  and  profitable 
study,  scarcely  comes  within  the  scope  of  this  article;  but  I  will  give, 
as  calculated  at  Vilette,  "  the  returns  of  the  products  of  an  ox  of  the 
average  weight  of  350  kilograms  (770  pounds)  and  of  average  quality: 

Returns  of  products. 

Francs. 

Hide,  average  weight  48  kilograms,  at  1  franc 48.00 

Suet,  25  kilograms,  at  92  centimes 23.00 

Refuse ;...    18.00 

Total 89.00 

Expenses. 

Octroi,  at  12  francs  per  100  kilograms ., 42.00 

Bringing  from  the  market  to  the  abattoir 35 

Washing  of  the  tripes 40 

Labor fc 6.00 

Sundry  expenses  (food,  material,  &c.) 5.00 

Total 53.75 

Balance 35.25 

Or  about  10  francs  per  100  kilograms. 

This  proves  that  an  ox  bought  in  the  market  for  1.60  francs  per  kilo- 
gram (per  pound  about  14  cents)  costs  in  the  abattoir  1.50  francs  per 
kilogram  (per  pound  about  13  cents). 

The  variation  in  the  prices  of  hides  and  suet  may  more  or  less  in- 
fluence the  price  of  the  net  meat,  but  the  above  figures  demonstrate  in 
an  exact  and  general  way  the  returns  of  the  products  and  the  cost  of  the 
labor  and  management. 

The  return  of  net  meat  of  the  animals  slaughtered  in  Paris  varies  ac- 
cording to  the  age,  the  race,  the  kind  of  food,  and  the  degree  of  fatness 
they  have  reached. 

The  returns  at  Paris  are  greater,  as  the  journey  rids  the  intestines  of 
excrement. 

The  net  returns  from  cattle  from  3  to  5  years  old  is  found  to  be  pro- 
portionally the  best.  The  average  return  is,  for  cattle  in  ordinary  con- 
dition, from  50  to  55  per  cent. ;  half  fattened,  55  to  60  per  cent.;  fat- 
tened, 60  to  65  per  cent. ;  extra  fattened,  65  to  70  per  cent. 

Animals  slaughtered  in  the  abattoir  gene'ral  at  Paris. 


Tear. 

Oxen. 

Calves. 

Lambs. 

TotaL 

Year. 

Oxen. 

Calves. 

Lambs. 

Total. 

1873.-    - 

161,862 

129,  698 

1,  030,  615 

1,  322,  175 

1878  .     . 

189,  499 

183,  798 

1,  431,  537 

1,  786,  834 

1874..   . 
1875  .     . 

166,579 
189.  333 

138,  360 
162,379 

1,  140,  530 
1,  238,  482 

1,  445,  469 
1,590,104 

1879  .     .' 
1880  .     . 

198,  573 
218,  080 

183,  777 
186,  913 

1,  409,  129 
1,  531,  462 

1,  791,  479 
1,  936,  455 

1876..   . 
1877..   . 

194,  505 

183,  190 

163,043 
177,  4GO 

1,  277,  7'26 
1,  280,  43(J 

1,641,234 
1,  C41,  080 

1881  .     . 
1882  .     . 

232,  621 
239,  204 

192,  781 
198,  473 

1,573,563 
1,  603,  123 

1,  998,  965 
2,  040,  780 

The  above  figures,  from  an  authentic  source,  give  an  idea  of  the  im- 
mense work  done  in  this  vast  establishment. 

The  number  of  animals  slaughtered  in  the  abattoirs  of  Grenelle  and 
Villejuif  during  the  year  1882  was  :  Oxen,  34,178 ;  calves,  31,970 ;  lambs. 
203,843. 


260 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


This  gives  the  following  total  of  animals  slaughtered  in  Paris  in  1882  : 
Oxen,  273,381*;  calves,  230/143;  lambs,  1,806,060. 

OCTKOI  TAXES. 

The  octroi,  or  municipal  tax,  is  levied  in  all  cities  and  villages  upon 
every  article  of  food  and  drink.  Every  person  who  eats  and  drinks 
thus*  becomes  a  tax-payer. 

GKADINO  MEAT  IN  LILLE,  PARIS,  AND  LONDON. 

The  different  appreciation  of  the  various  cuts  of  meat  in  the  markets 
of  Lille,  Paris,  and  London  is  astonishing.  The  stock-breeders  are  in- 
terested and  should  familiarize  themselves  with  this  question,  that  they 
may  know  what  portions  of  the  body  they  should  strive  to  develop  by 
the  judicious  choice  of  breeding  animals.  In  the  same  animal  the  mar 
ket  price  varies  more  than  half,  according  to  the  part  of  the  animal 
from  which  it  is  taken.  A  pound  of  the  fillet  in  the  subjoined  cut,  No. 
1,  lig.  2,  and  No.  5,  fig.  1,  are  sold  at  Lille  at  41  cents  and  at  Paris  at 
44  cents  per  pound,  while  the  portions  13,  14,  and  15  scarcely  bring  12J 
to  14  cents  per  pound.  This  distinction  is  not  made  in  all  the  cities, 
but  is  destined  to  become  general  in  all  large  centers  of  consumption. 

The  accompanying  cuts  and  tables  give  a  clear  idea  of  the  mode  of 
grading  beef  in  Lille,  Paris,  and  London  : 

Mode  of  dividing  an  ox  in  the  abattoirs  at  Paris. 


Quality. 

Number 
of 
pieces. 

Names  of  pieces. 

Weight  of 
each  piece  ot 
a  fat 
Noiiu;in  ox, 
weighing 
457  kilojrrams 
net  (1,007.50 
pounds). 

f 

1 

Veiny  piece  ..,..  . 

Pounds. 
44.  09 

2 

Ditch  bone  
Thu-k  flunk  -.  

66.14 

44  (;9 

, 

*-H 

4 

Sirloin    

110  23 

Fillet           

1'  41 

I 

G 

33  07 

Total  of  first  quality  . 

313  05 

( 

7 

H.  .J 

8 

11  02 

* 

9 

Ribs  

99.20 

Total  of  srcnnil  quality 

°61  54 

]0 

Chnolc                                                                                                          \ 

55  12 

11 

Neck....  

77  10 

la 

Biisket  

165.34 

en.... 

33 

Li1"*  flml  shin 

55  11 

H 

Cheek     ...     . 

22.  04 

15 

Inner  wirloin 

29  01 

33.10 

Total  of  third  quality 

429.  91 

Total  of  the  thrc.o  qualities 

1,007.50 

kft 


I:  5: 

CO      >* 


FRANCE. 

Mode  of  dividing  an  ox  in  tlie  abattoirs  at  Lille. 


261 


Quality. 

Number 
of 
pieces. 

Names  of  pieces. 

Weight  of 
each  piece  of 
a  fat 
Flauiaud  ox, 
weighing 
458  kilograms 
not  (1,009.70 
pounds). 

f 

1 

Fillet  ,     ...     . 

Pounds. 
15  00 

2 

Rump  .... 

70  54 

T-        J 

3 

Itibs  

77  16 

X—  -1 

4 

Sirloin  

61  72 

5 

Veiuy  piece... 

35  27 

[ 

G 

Thick  llauk  

57  32 

Total  of  first  quality 

S17  01 

( 

7 

Blind  ribs  sirloin  

9°  60 

n....} 

8 

MOOKO  buttock  

59  52 

( 

0 

Piece  culled  'Tij'1  

43.50 

Total  of  second  quality 

200  6° 

f 

10 

Shoulder  

47  00 

11 

Chuck  

CO.  13 

12 

Flank  

68  34 

13 

Brisket 

92  60 

14 

Neck  

52.  91 

15 

Le<T  and  ohin   &c 

115  09 

Total  of  third  quality                                                     

49°.  07 

Total  of  the  three  qualities                                           

1,  009.  70 

Mode  of  dividing  an  ox  in  the  Lomlou  butcher-stalls. 


"Weight  of 

each  piece  of 

a  4-years 

Quality. 

Number 
of 

Names  of  pieces. 

of  ago,  ordi- 
nary quality, 

pieces. 

1,032  pounds, 

English 

weight  (467 

kilograms). 

Pounds. 

r 

1 

Sirloin              ..            

144 

2 

72 

I...J 

3 

Ditch-bone      

32 

I 

4 

Buttcck                                         .  

112 

[ 

10 

112 

"~  472 

r 

6 

56 

7 

n      \ 

24 

1 

11 

Middle  ribs                                       

120 

[ 

13 

48 

248 

g 

Thin  flank                              

7* 

in       < 

JO 

Chuck                                             .                                        --•- 

44 

14 

Brisket                         

64 

{• 

15 

Clod                                                     .          

40 

16 

48 

16 

44 

18 

Cheek                                                           

312 

1,~032 

262 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


FOOD  CONSUMPTION  IN  FRANCE. 

I  give  below  a  table  of  the  ordinary  annual  consumption  of  food  in 
the  principal  cities  of  France,  per  capita;  also  a  table  of  the  imports 
and  exports  of  cattle  and  their  products  in  France  for  the  last  three 
years : 


Cities. 

Bread. 

"Wine. 

Fresh, 
meat. 

Paris  

Kilos. 
•     ]64 

Liters. 
094 

Kilos. 
80 

175 

O-.JQ 

71 

Marseilles  „  

244 

186 

63 

Bordeaux  

165 

°IO 

65 

Lille  

210 

49 

Nantes  

2G7 

1G2 

46 

177 

176 

55 

Eouen  

183 

49 

61 

This  table  demonstrates  that  the  people  of  Paris  consume  in  average 
the  most  wine  and  the  least  bread,  and  those  of  Lyons  the  most  wine. 
The  inhabitants  of  Eouen  and  Lille  consume  the  smallest  quantity  of 
wine,  owing  to  the  absence  of  vineyards  and  the  great  consumption  of 
cider  in  the  former  and  of  beer  in  the  latter  place.  The  annual  con- 
sumption of  beer  in  Lille  is  213  liters  and  of  cider  124  liters  in  average. 

IMPORT  AND  EXPORT  OF  ANIMALS  FOR  FOOD. 

The  import  and  export  of  animals  for  food  and  their  products  for 
France  during  the  last  three  years : 


! 

Import. 

Export. 

1882. 

1881. 

1880. 

1882. 

1881. 

1880. 

Oxen  head.. 
Cows  do  . 

77,  866 
50,  133 

54,  133 
44  093 

68,  384 
65  431 

39,  908 
29  355 

27,  531 
30  455 

19,  956 

22  259 

Fresh  meat  kilograms  .  . 
Cheese  do  
Butter  .do.... 

60,285 
16,  056,  038 
6,  341,  010 

57,  451 
15,  638,  946 
7,  271,  593 

75,  185 
15,  790,  488 
7,  045,  036 

9,182 
4,  430,  534 
38,  366,  629 

8,419 
4,  076,  557 
30,  879,  118 

5,472 
4,  267,  297 
31,  064,  521 

MEAT  PRICES  IN  FRANCE. 

We  have  seen  that  the  average  price  of  good  marketable  beef  on  foot 
at  Paris  is  about  32  cents  per  pound,  28  cents  for  second  class,  and  24 
cents  for  third  class,  while  at  Eouen  the  prices  are  30  cents,  33  cents, 
and  30  cents  for  the  same ;  the  latter  prices  prevail  at  Lille.  There 
seems  no  reason  why  this  discrimination  should  exist  to  the  prejudice 
of  the  latter  cities,  except  that  no  person  ever  thinks  of  underselling 
his  neighbor  here,  and  it  would  be  torture  to  any  vender  to  discover 
that  he  had  not  obtained  the  highest  possible  price. 

THE  FOOD  DEFICIT  OF  FRANCE  I   WHENCE  IMPORTED. 

From  these  tables  can  be  seen  that  France  does  not  produce  its  own 
meat  and  dairy  products,  and  never  can.  France  is  very  far  from  fur- 
nishing a  good  nourishing  regimen.  The  average  consumption  of  meat 
among  the  rural  population  is  about  57  pounds  per  headj  in  rural  dis- 


FRANCE.  263 

tricts  containing  more  than  1,000  inhabitants,  147  pounds;  and  176 
pounds  in  Paris.  In  England  the  average  consumption  of  meat  per 
head  is  about  180  pounds.  This  estimate  of  consumption  must  be  still 
cut  down,  for  it  would  require  upwards  of  6,600,000,000  pounds  to  fur- 
nish this  quota,  but  the  actual  consumption  only  reaches  2,600,000,000 
to  2,800,000,000  pounds,  of  which  about  one-tenth  is  imported.  Italy 
contributes  largely  of  this  amount,  in  the  exceptional  year  of  1878  fur- 
nishing to  France  72,661  oxen,  41,775  cows,  and  230,000  sheep.  Algeria, 
as  noted  before,  gave  42,250  oxen  in  that  year;  Belgium  furnished  5,000 
oxen  and  37,000  cows;  Switzerland  some  hundreds  of  oxen  and  thou- 
sands of  cows  and  sheep ;  Germany,  besides  1,135,000  sheep,  sent  some 
hundreds  of  oxen  and  thousands  of  cows.  The  United  States,  up  to  that 
time,  had  sent  only  659  oxen.  Many  American  cattle  find  their  way 
through  Belgium  into  France,  owing  to  greater  facilities  for  shipping 
by  the  Belgian  lines.  In  regard  to  the  amount  of  this  traffic  the  in- 
formation can  be  furnished  by  consuls  of  French  ports  in  regular  steam 
communication  with  the  United  States. 

A  deficiency  of  the  home  supply  of  meat  exists  in  France,  yet  the 
Government  has  been  called  upon  to  play  the  role  of  Providence  and  be- 
come responsible  for  unfruitful  seasons,  and  is  expected  to  solve  the 
problem  of  rendering  a  high  price  to  the  farmer  for  his  meat  and  grain, 
while  furnishing  cheap  bread  to  the  laborer.  A  large  number  of  the 
more  intelligent  of  the  population,  influenced  in  some  degree,  perhaps, 
by  private  interests,  consider  the  public  consumption  of  food  as  limited 
and  incapable  of  extension,  and  that  increased  exertion  is  alone  neces- 
sary to  supply  the  home  demand.  They  therefore  conclude  that  the  im- 
portation of  foreign  food  is  directly  hostile  to  the  rights  of  the  French 
producer,  and,  relatively,  curtails  labor. 

When  they  prohibit  and  restrict  the  free  entry  of  articles  of  food,  they 
seem  oblivious  to  the  fact  that,  while  they  can  do  little  more  to  increase 
the  supply,  the  ordinary  increase  of  population  demands  greater  supply, 
and  that  in  cheapening  the  necessaries  of  life  they  increase  the  moral 
and  physical  vigor  of  the  workman,  and  enable  the  poor  consumer  to 
apply  the  difference  to  other  wants.  This  policy  weighs  heavily,  and 
inflicts  cruel  sufferings  every  day  upon  the  manufacturing  districts  and 
affords  no  relief  to  the  farmer. 

CATTLE-FEEDINGS  IN  FRANCE. 

Stall  feeding. — In  the  north  fattening  is  done  largely  in  cattle-sheds 
near  sugar-houses,  or  in  dairies  near  towns.  The  residue  of  sugar 
works,  distilleries,  and  breweries,  also  oil  cakes  of  oleaginous  grains, 
form  the  principal  base  of  their  diet. 

Farinaceous  food  takes  but  a  secondary  place  and  is  only  used  as  an 
accessory.  The  pnlp  of  the  beet-root  takes  the  principal  place  in  the 
fattening.  It  is  difficult  to  form  any  idea  of  the  enormous  quantities  of 
food  that  the  sugar  works  and  distilleries  of  beet-root  afford  for  fatten- 
ing purposes. 

At  present  France  produces  432,000  tons  of  sugar,  for  which  it  requires 
7,987,500  tons  of  beet-root,  one-third  of  which,  2,662,500  tons,  pressed 
pulp  of  beets  after  the  saccharine  matter  is  extracted,  is  used  for  fatten- 
ing cattle. 

Pasture  feeding. — It  is  said  that  the  scarcity  of  farm  labor  is  circum- 
scribing the  limits  of  this  industry.  In  the  description  of  many  of  the 
different  breeds  mention  was  made  that  pastures  abounded  especially 
In  Normandy,  the  north,  Charolais,  Nivernais,  Auvergne,  Franche 


264  CATTLE   AND   DAI11Y   FARMING. 

Comte",  and  Yende'e.    Those  of  Normandy  can  be  considered  the  best 
for  fattening  purposes. 

Nievre  and  Oharolais  rank  second.  The  rental  of  these  pastures 
varies.  In  Normandy  there  are  three  classes  or  qualities.  The  first  is 
valued  at  $2G  per  aero ;  it  is  estimated  that  six-tenths  of  an  acre  of  this 
land  will  fatten  an  ox  of  1.200  or  1,300  pounds,  live  weight.  The  second- 
class  pastures  rent  at  $21  per  acre,  which  is  considered  sufficient  to 
fatten  an  ox  of  1,100  pounds,  live  weight.  The  third  quality  rents  for 
$19  per  acre,  and  three-fourths  of  an  acre  is  considered  sufficient  for 
fattening  an  ox  of  900  pounds. 

FATTENING  CATTLE  IN  FRANCE. 

The  graziers  of  Normandy  buy  at  the  cattle  fairs  of  Bretagne,  Anjou, 
Maine,  Berry,  Manche,  Touraine,  Poitou,  and  Santonge,  towards  the 
last  of  April,  thin  cattle  of  the  Breton,  Normand,  Parthenais,  Salers, 
Mancclle,  and  mixed  Durham  breeds.  These  cattle  are  turned  into  the 
third-class  pastures  at  first,  where  they  rest  and  refresh  themselves. 
When  improvement  in  their  condition  is  observed  they  pass  succes- 
sively into  the  second  and  first  class  pastures.  One-fourth  are  ready  for 
sale  "in  three  months,  or  in  the  month  of  August;  one-half  leave  the 
pastures  for  the  market  one  month  later  j  the  last  are  sent  forward  in 
October.  The  fattening,  therefore,  takes  about  four  months.  Every 
fat  animal  sold  is  replaced  by  a  thin  one.  When  the  feed  is  too  short 
for  cattle,  sheep  take  their  place,  at  the  rate  of  two  heads  for  one  of 
cattle.  The  pasture  is  thus  occupied  from  the  1st  of  May  until  the  15th 
of  November.  Milking  cows  are  pastured  the  same  length  of  time,  and 
arc  stabled  for  the  rest  of  the  year,  and  fed  on  hay,  carrots,  cabbages, 
pulp  of  beets,  or  brewers7  grains ;  to  this  is  added,  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Lille,  to  cows  in  full  milk,  a  mash  of  pulverized  beans  or  oil-cake. 
Carrots,  parsnips  rich  in  sugar,  beet-root,  potatoes,  artichokes,  turnips, 
and  rutabagas  constitute  the  winter  food  of  the  cattle.  Very  little  grain 
is  fed. 

COST  OF  FATTENING  CATTLE  IN  FRANCE  AND  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  French  calculate  that  it  costs  $37  per  head  to  fatten  cattle  in 
France,  and  only  $2.40  to  $2.75  in  the  United  States. 

HOW  TO  PURCHASE  CATTLE  IN  FRANCE. 

The  requirements  and  deficiencies  of  this  market  in  regard  to  meat 
are  evident.  A  practical  man  looking  over  the  ground  could  determine 
the  best  manner  of  importing  them,  and,  as  remarked,  I  am  informed 
that  Belgium  aifords  the  cheapest  entry,  and  if  the  cattle  are  suffered 
to  rest  in  the  rich  pastures  of  that  country  the  benefit  would  result  in 
pecuniary  profit. 

With  a  view  of  answering  the  interrogatories  contained  in  the  cattle 
circular,  I  have  endeavored  to  assist  in  this  effort  to  increase  and  amelio- 
rate the  native  breeds  of  cattle,  which  is  justly  considered  one  of  the 
most  important  elements  in  the  general  agricultural  prosperity  of  a 
country.  In  endeavoring  to  describe  the  various  breeds  of  cattle  found 
in  France,  and  delineating  the  especial  value  of  these  breeds  in  such  a 
manner  that  the  American  breeder  could  determine  the  advantages,  if 
any,  which  would  follow  their  introduction,  I  would  merely  further  add, 
that  the  only  knowledge  absolutely  essential  to  one  desirous  of  buying 


FEANCE.  265 

cattle  in  this  market  is  that  lie  should  know  what  he  wants  and  be  ca- 
pable of  selecting  the  best  specimens  of  the  breed.  A  buyer  could  pur- 
chase as  large  a  number  as  he  wished  with  comparatively  little  trouble, 
ior  he  could  avail  himself  of  the  fairs,  which  are  held  annually,  monthly, 
and  weekly  in  all  parts  of  France,  where  several  thousands  of  cattle 
are  exposed  to  sale  and  change  hands. 

If  ignorant  of  the  language,  he  can  readily  find  an  interpreter,  or,  if 
he  asks  it,  his  consul  will  find  one  for  him  and  otherwise  assist  him. 

THE  SUITABILITY  OF  FRENCH  CATTLE  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

I  unhesitatingly  state,  as  the  result  of  my  study  of  this  subject,  that 
the  intelligent  stock  breeder  can  nowhere  better  than  in  France  find 
as  good  and  great  a  variety  of  breeds  of  cattle  from  which  to  select 
those  suitable  to  the  various  requirements  of  the  United  States. 

CHAS.  P.  WILLIAMS, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Eouen,  May  22,  1884. 


Special  statistics  regarding  French  cattle. 


Name  of  breed. 

Origin  of  breed. 

Age  at 
maturity. 

Weight 
of  meat, 
net. 

Color. 

Flarnande  .  .......  .... 

North,  of  France 

T  ears. 
3 

Pounds. 
1  100 

Red  and  brown. 

Q 

2  400 

Erindle 

Uretonne    ..       ..     ..     .....        

Brittany 

Q 

'594 

Lijlht  red 

De  Salors 

5 

1  370 

3Ji  iglit  red 

Limousine     ..... 

Limousin 

3*8 

*695 

Yellow 

Ji2 

I'arthenaise 

La  Vende'e 

5 

715 

Pale  red. 

Maine  and  Loire  ..... 

3rS 

740 

Light  red. 

ITauiG  of  breed. 

Annual 
milk 
yield. 

Milk  to 
pounds 
of  butter. 

Size  at  maturity. 

Live  weight. 

Cow. 

Ox. 

Cow. 

Ox. 

ITlamande        .                                   .. 

2,700 
3  000 
liSOO 
1,600 

«Si 

13 

7 
8 

Ft.  In. 
4     6 

Ft.  In. 

Pounds. 
1,100 

Pounds. 
1,800 
4,200 
770 
2,  200 
1,  030 
850 
1,100 
1,100 

7    10 

3      5 

480 

T)(»  Salers 

4      6 

4      7 

5      0 

Mancelle 

266  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

DIVISION  OF  LAND  AND  CATTLE  BREEDING  IN  FRANCE. 

REPORT  BY  VICE-CONSUL  MARTIN,  OF  MARSEILLES. 
OLD-TIME   CATTLE-BREEDING-  IN  TRANCE. 

Until  a  comparatively  recent  date  the  French  peasant  appeared  to 
attach  no  value  to  cattle  beyond  that  arising  from  their  produce  in  labor 
or  in  milk.  Every  animal  that  was  born  was  either  expected  to  do  serv- 
ice and  toil  in  its  peculiar  capacity  for  the  whole  term  of  its  active  life, 
and  was  seldom  turned  over  to  the  butcher  before  he  had  reached  the 
age  of  ten  years  or  more,  or  be  slaughtered  for  consumption  as  soon  as 
weaned  and  before  its  keeping  would  become  an  expense  to  its  owner. 

Hence  the  favor  that  veal  still  finds  in  France  as  an  article  of  food, 
and  probably  also  the  great  natural  fault  of  the  generality  of  French 
breeds,  viz,  slow  maturity. 

Under  these  circumstances  the  farmer  who,  partly  on  account  of  the 
.advanced  age  of  the  animal  and  partly  through  the  collusion  of  the 
butchers,  could  not  even  obtain  the  price  originally  paid  for  his  cattle, 
had  come  to  look  upon  it  as  a  sort  of  necessary  evil,  and  made  no  effort 
to  improve  or  even  to  maintain  the  integrity  of  the  original  French 
breeds. 

INSTITUTION  OF  CATTLE   SHOWS  IN  FRANCE. 

In  1854  the  Government,  perceiving  the  danger  of  this  disposition  of 
French  farmers,  instituted  annual  shows  in  the  several  regions  of  the 
country,  where  prizes  were  awarded  to  the  best  specimens  of  agricult- 
ural produce,  and  especially  of  cattle,  with  particular  attention  to  im- 
provement in  the  direction  of  meat  product  and  early  maturity.  At  the 
same  time  the  growing  welfare  of  the  people  brought  about  a  marked 
increase  in  the  consumption  of  meat,  naturally  attended  J>y  an  advance 
in  prices. 

The  farmer  was  not  long  in  finding  out  that  he  could  realize  a  profit 
in  the  sale  of  his  stock  if  it  was  brought  to  the  market  in  a  fair  condi- 
tion, and  perceived  the  advantage  of  renewing  it  oftener,  and  at  the 
same  time  made  some  effort  stewards  improving  its  qualities  and  mend- 
ing its  faults. 

CATTLE  CENSUS  OF  FRANCE. 

As  to  quantity  there  does  not  seem  to  have  been  decided  progress 
made  in  the  last  fifty  years.  As  far  back  as  1837,  a  census  made  in 
that  year  fixed  the  number  of  horned  cattle  at  9,936,538.  In  1866,  after 
the  annexation  of  Savoy  and  Nice,  it  was  estimated  to  be  some  12,000,000 ; 
in  1876,  after  the  loss  of  the  rich  provinces  of  Alsace  and  Lorrain,  it 
was  reduced  to  11,351,220 ;  and  the  returns  for  1880,  the  last  published, 
give  an  aggregate  of  11,446,253. 

That  this  number  is  not  sufficient  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  population 
is  shown  by  the  amount  of  importation  of  neat  cattle  in  the  same  year3 
1880,  which  was  no  less  than  196,508  heads  and  exceeded  the  exporta- 
tion by  137,207. 

In  1881  the  difference  fell  to  74,277  heads,  but  in  1882  it  again  rose  to 
108,571.  The  importation  of  butcher's  meat  is  also  large,  and  amounted 
for  the  three  years  above  named,  respectively,  to  8,518,500,  5,745,100, 
and  6,028,500  kilograms. 

DIVISION   OF  LAND  IN  FRANCE. 

That  the  breeding  of  cattle  does  not  keep  pace  with  the  increasing 
consumption  of  meat,  nor  find  sufficient  encouragement  in  the  conse- 


FRANCE. 


267 


queiit  advance  of  prices,  can  only  be  explained  by  the  extreme  division 
of  land  property  in  this  country. 

It  originated  at  the  time  of  the  French  Revolution,  when  all  the  es- 
tates belonging  to  the  nobility  (nearly  the  whole  territory)  were  confis- 
cated and  sold  at  auction.  Then  the  succession  law  embodied  in  the 
French  civil  code  aggregated  the  effects  of  this  first  parceling  of  the 
territory. 

It  provides  that  each  heir  can  claim  to  receive  his  share  of  the  inher- 
itance in  kind,  and  that  the  share  allotted  to  each  should  contain 
an  equal  distribution  of  the  constituent  parts  of  the  estate,  real  and  per- 
sonal. 

It  is  easy  to  imagine  to  what  extent  the  working  of  this  law  has  di- 
vided landed  property  in  France  since  the  beginning  of  this  century. 

Again,  the  French  peasant  allows  the  great  desire,  inherent  to  his 
nature,  of  owning  the  ground  that  he  cultivates  to  allure  him  into  pur- 
chasing small  lots  at  rates  which  large  land  owners  could  not  obtain  for 
their  whole  property.  The  latter  finding  that  they  can  by  selling  their 
land  piecemeal  realize  profits  from  20  to  30  per  cent,  larger,  do  not  hes- 
itate to  dispose  of  it  in  that  way. 

The  consequence  has  been,  that  while  real  estate  at  one  time  acquired 
almost  incredible  value  (from  $2.00  to  $1,000  per  acre,  and  for  some  ex- 
ceptionally productive  land  as  much  as  $1,600),  nearly  all  the  soil  has 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  peasantry,  who  excel  at  reaping  from  the 
earth  all  that  industry  can  achieve,  but  who  too  often  lack  the  means 
of  carrying  on  agriculture  on  a  large  scale.  It  is  estimated  that  from 
75  to  90  percent,  of  the  cultivated  land  of  France  belongs  to  what  is 
called  "petite  culture,"  that  is,  to  that  class  of  farmers  who  work  their 
own  land  with  no  other  help  than  that  of  their  children. 

At  the  same  time  those  who  do  not  own  land  in  their  own  right,  or 
have  none  to  expect  by  inheritance,  flock  to  the  cities  where  they  find 
better  remuneration  for  their  work  and  thus  contribute,  together  with 
the  necessities  of  the  military  service  in  this  country,  in  making  scarcity 
of  help  one  of  the  most  serious  grievances  of  French  agriculture. 

For  this  reason  we  see  that  almost  all  the  productive  land  of  the 
country  is  devoted  to  such  culture  as  may  be  expected  to  give  the  best 
results  under  the  smallest  outlay. 

A  schedule  of  the  share  occupied  by  each  important  branch  of  agri- 
culture  may  here  be  of  interest : 


Arable  land. 

Acres. 

Propor- 
tion to 
total 
surface. 

Agricultural  products: 
"Wheat                                                                

17,  071,  120 

Per  cent 

19  936  350 

4,  970,  556 

Potatoes 

3  322  543 

Beets                                                                              .                            

1,  174,  893 

Colza 

303,  218 

16,  450,  311 

C3,  288,  991 
12,  378,  036 

50.45 
9.86 

1,526,575 

1.21 

19,  594,  208 

15.61 

5,  336,  493 

4.25 

Heath  lands  and  other  unproductive  land  

23,  370,  133 

18.62 

Total  

125,494,496 

100.  00 

268 


CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 


DIVISION  OF  CATTLE  IN  FRANCE. 

This  peculiar  division  of  land  and  culture  in  Franco  has  led  to  a  simi- 
lar division  of  the  cattle-raising  industry. 

Nowhere  in  this  country  is  it  made  a  special  pursuit,  and  the  stock 
passes  through  many  hands  before  it  is  finally  turned  over  to  the  butcher. 
As  a  rule  it  is  raised  in  those  parts  of  the  country  where  pasture  land 
is  abundant  and  the  soil  unfit  for  other  culture.  As  soon  as  the  young 
animal  is  strong  enough  it  is  taken  to  one  of  the  numerous  fairs  that 
are  held  in  all  parts  of  the  country  ;  a  farmer,  whoso  ground  is  not  ex- 
tensive, will  buy  the  calf  and  submit  it  for  a  short  time  to  the  light 
work  which  ho  requires,  and  after  a  few  months,  when  the  yearling  has 
grown  in  his  hands,  he  will  take  it  again  to  the  fair,  sell  it  at  a  small 
profit,  and  buy  another  younger  animal  with  the  same  prospect  of  profit 
for  the  future. 

In  this  wise,  the  stock  is  bought  and  sold  several  times  before  it  passes 
into  the  hands  of  an  "engraisseur,"  who  makes  it  a  special  business  to 
buy  from  farmers  cattle  which  he  brings  to  a  satisfactory  condition  of 
"fat,"  and  finally  sells  to  the  butcher. 

Under  this  system  the  different  original  French  breeds  have  neces- 
sarily become  mixed  to  a  large  extent,  and  it  is  difficult  to  determine 
exactly  the  number  and  importance  of  each.  In  a  general  way,  cattle 
are  most  numerous  in  the  northern  and  eastern  parts  of  France  where 
milk  is  a  common  diet ;  in  the  south,  where  oil  supersedes  butter  very 
largely,  the  breeds  show  a  greater  aptitude  for  labor;  and  in  th.e  south- 
eastern region,  where  neither  milk  nor  labor  is  in  great  demand,  there 
is  no  special  breed,  and  the  number  of  cattle  is  extremely  limited. 

In  the  seven  departments  forming  this  consular  district  meat  cattle 
only  number  110,018  head,  or  less  than  1  per  cent,  of  the  total  of  France, 
and  it  is,  so  to  speak,  all  imported  either  from  the  cattle-raising  parts 
of  France,  or  from  Italy,  Sardinia,  and  Algeria. 

This  made  it  impossible  to  collect  any  inform atioir  directly  from  the 
breeder,  which  would  have  been  of  far  greater  value  and  interest ;  and 
in  tho  following  description  of  the  most  important  French  breeds  I  had 
recourse  to  official  statistics  as  to  numbers  and  to  the  works  of  tho 
Marquis  do  Dampierro  and  M.  J.  Magne  as  to  tho  several  breeds.* 

CATTLE   CENSUS   OF  FRANCE. 

As  no  census  of  the  stock  of  this  country  was  ever  made  with  special 
regard  to  the  several  breeds,  I  have  adopted  the  plan  in  the  following 
statement  to  give  the  number  of  cattle  belonging  to  each  agricultural 
region  of  France  which  will  permit  a  comparison  of  their  relative  im- 
portance : 


District. 

Area. 

Proportion  to 
area  of  district 

Number  of  cattle  in  1830. 

Number  of 
Lead  to  each 
LOGO  acres. 

Arable 
Land. 

Pasture 
land. 

Oxen  and 

bulls. 

Cows. 

Yearlings. 

Total. 

Eastern    ... 

Acres. 
16,  693,  000 
22,  920,  107 
19,989,243 
19,  455,  312 
16,  472,  645 
12,  936,  014 
17,  028,  175 

Pr.ct. 

54 
70 
58 
57 
it 
39 
28 

Pr.ct 
13 
12 
13 
16 
9 
7 
4 

356,  042 
209,  230 
907,  210 
311,593 
441,  944 
155,  831 
110,  889 

1,  138,  040 
1,  698,  615 
1,788,925 
1,  129,  777 
59$,  541 
381,185 
378,  159 

275,441 
438,  6C6 
492,  137 
340,  578 
145,  445 
88,  145 
59,  850 

1,  769,  523 
2,  346,  511 
3,188,272 
1,781,958 
1,  185,  9JO 
625,  161 
548,  898 

106 
102 
159 
92 
72 
4-8 
32 

Northern   ...... 

Western 

Central  
Soutli  western.  .  . 
Southern 

Southeastern  .  .  . 
Total 

125,  494,  496 

1 

3,  492,  739 

7,113,242 

1,  840,  272 

11,  446,  253 

1  

*  These  interesting  descriptions  of  French  cattle  are  omitted,  being  fully  covered  by 
some  of  the  other  reports  from  France. 


FRANCE.  269 

PHYSICAL  FEATURES  OF  FEANCE  BY  DISTRICTS. 

Description  of  Northeastern  and  Eastern  France.* — The  northeastern 
and  eastern  regions  are  generally  mountainous,  covered  with  wood  arid 
pasture  land.  Unproductive  land  is  extensive  and  agriculture  less 
advanced  than  in  most  of  the  other  regions.  The  vineyards  are  im- 
portant and  produce  the  celebrated  wines  of  Champagne  and  Burgundy. 
Ilye  is  more  important  than  wheat,  and  colza  and  hemp  are  also  largely 
grown. 

Nearly  all  the  geological  formations  can  be  found  in  this  mountainous 
region,  the  primary  and  granitic  in  the  Alps,  the  Jurassic  in  the  Jura 
range  and  in  the  greater  portion  of  the  region,  the  cretaceous  in  the 
Champagne  district,  the  triassic  and  permian  in  the  Vosges,  the  porpby- 
raceous  in  the  Beaujolais  and  Morvan  provinces,  and  the  alluvium  in 
that  part  of  Alsace  \hat  was  left  to  France. 

The  climate  is  more  extreme  than  in  any  other  part  of  France  ;  the 
mean  summer  temperature  is  Gl°,  that  of  winter  32° ;  the  rainfall 
amounts  to  26.22  inches  per  annum.  The  rainy  days  average  137  iti  the 
year,  and  frost  70. 

The  prevailing  winds  blow  from  the  northeast  and  southwest. 

Description  of  Northern  France.} — The  northern  region  is  the  richest, 
most  fertile,  and  best  cultivated  region  of  France. 

The  land,  which  is  nowhere  in  the  region  absolutely  unproductive,  is 
only  broken  by  low  and  cultivated  hills.  The  proximity  of  Paris  insures 
for  all  the  produce  of  the  region  a  certain  and  profitable  outlet,  and 
there  is  scarcely  a  branch  of  agriculture  that  is  not  followed. 

There,  too,  landed  property  has  better  resisted  the  disintegration  prev- 
alent in  France,  and  permitted  of  the  valuable  use  of  agricultural  ma- 
chines. In  brief,  every  produce  of  the  French  soil  is  extensively  and 
profitably  grown  in  the  iwrthera  region,  except  a  few  that  require  a. 
warmer  climate — the  olive,  orange,  and  grape — although  some  vines  are 
to  be  found  in  spine  parts  of  the  region. 

It  belongs  entirely  to  the  mioceue  formation,  Jurassic,  calcareous,  and 
tertiary.  The  climate  is  tempered  by  the  sea  breezes  and  is  equally 
free  from  intense  cold  and  heat.  The  mean  summer  temperature  is 
63°;  and  that  of  winter  40°.  The  mild  and  damp  winters  are  favorable 
to  pastures,  which  acquire  particular  qualities  from  the  beneficent  sea 
air. 

The  rainfall  .averages  22  inches  and  the  rainy  days  110.  Southwest 
and  northeast  winds  are  prevalent. 

Description  of  Western  Francc.$— The  western  region,  much  alike  to 
the  northern  region  in  its  principal  features,  is  far  from  equaling  it  in 
riches  and  advanced  agriculture. 

Brittany,  which  forms  tho  principal  part  of  the  region,  is  of  primary 
and  granitic  formation.  It  is  covered  with  heaths  and  landes,  and  can- 
not raise  successfully  anything  but  buckwheat. 

The  other  parts  of  the  region  have  greater  analogy  with  the  northern 
region,  and  in  a  general  way  the  description  given  of  the  latter  applies 
also  to  the  former. 

Description  of  Central  Francc.§~The  central  region  contains  two  dif- 
ferent parts,  tho  plains  in  the  north,  and  the  central  table-land  in 
France. 

*  The  breeds  raised  in  ibis  district  arc  the  Charolais.tho  Comtoiso,  and  the  Morvan. 

tThe  breeds  of  cattlo  raised  in  Northern  Franco  are  tho  Normandy  and  the  Flemish. 

{The  breeds  of  cattle  raised  in  Western  France  are  the  Breton,  the  Choletais  or 
Parthonan,  and  the  Manceau. 

$  The  breeds  of  cattlo  raised  in  Central  France  are  the  Limousine,  the  Salors,  ana 
the  Aabrac. 


270  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Through  excessive  wood-clearing  the  plain  region  has  become  marshy, 
unproductive,  and  unwholesome. 

The  soil  is  generally  sandy,  with  an  impervious  clay  substratum,  where 
no  vegetation  is  seen  but  heaths  and  broom.  In  marly  parts  some  rye 
and  a  much  larger  quantity  of  buckwheat  is  grown. 

The  "  Plateau  Central,"  of  granitic  and  volcanic  formation,  embraces 
some  fertile  valleys,that  of  Limagne  among  others,  remarkable  by  its 
rich  loam  soil,  but  the  vegetable  earth,  which  is  most  common,  has  been 
formed  by  the  disintegration  of  feldspathic  rocks,  is  light,  and  fit  only  for 
woodland  and  meadows. 

Greenswards,  consisting  chiefly  of  an  herb  called  "  Mardus  stricta," 
are  found  on  the  highest  summits  of  the  table-land.  Under  those  cir- 
cumstances the  region  naturally  devoted  itself  to  the  cattle-raising  in- 
dustry, and  the  "Plateau  Central"  supplies  nearly  all  the  different  parts 
of  France  with  large  quantities  of  much  esteemed  stock. 

The  climate,  although  colder,  owing  to  the  altitude,  is  not  excessively 
so,  and  can  compare  favorably  with  many  other  parts  of  France. 

Description  of  Southwestern  France.*— The  southwestern  region,  which 
is  inclosed  between  the  ranges  of  the  Cevennes  and  the  Pyrenees  at  the 
east  and  south,  is  entirely  composed  of  plains  and  valleys,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  landeSj  a  wide  sandy  expanse,  resting  on  a  pudding-stone 
substratum ;  the  region  is  fertile  and  in  advanced  stage  of  culture  that 
embraces  all  the  agricultural  productions  of  France  except  the  olive 
and  orange. 

The  vineyards  cover  nearly  2,000,000  acres,  and  produce  the  well- 
known  Bordeaux  wines  and  a  good  deal  of  inferior  brandy.  The  cult- 
ure of  Indian  corn  comes  next  in  importance,  and  is  especially  extensive 
in  the  poorer  district,  where  the  peasant  uses  it  for  food  for  himself  and 
his  cattle,  and  as  flour,  fuel,  and  bedding.  The  natural  pasture  land  is 
also  plentiful,  and  sown  meadows  give  a  good  supply  of  luceru,  and 
particularly  clover,  the  use  of  which  has  grown  to  form  an  important 
branch  of  trade.  The  geological  formation  is  entirely  of  the  tertiary 
order  in  the  plains,  and  in  the  Cevennes  and  Pyrenees  partakes  oi7 
different  formations,  the  granitic  and  Jurassic  predominant. 

The  climate  is  moderate,  the  mean  temperature  being  G9°  in  summer 
and  41°  in  winter;  the  rainfall  averages  23  inches,  distributed  in  130 
rainy  days  in  the  year.  Frost  is  seldom  seen  for  more  than  35  days. 

Description  of  Southern  and  Southeastern  France. — Tliu  southern  and 
southeastern  regions  are  quite  different  in  every  respect  from  all  the 
other  regions  of  France. 

The  climate,  produce,  culture,  and  general  aspect  are  entirely  peculiar 
to  the  region.  Wood  and  pasture  lands  are  scarce,  the  calcareous  hills 
and  mountains,  stripped  of  the  last  vestige  of  a  tree,  are  barren  and 
grow  nothing  but  shrubbery  and  aromatic  herbs,  on  which  constantly 
browse  numerous  herds  of  starveling  sheep  that  are  led  from  one  hill 
to  another  and  lay  waste  all  those  parts  of  the  country  through  which 
they  travel. 

Three-fifths  of  the  region  are  utterly  sterile  and  deserted.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  two  other  fifths  are  remarkably  productive  and  turned 
to  culture  which  cannot  be  attempted  in  any  other  portion  of  France. 
The  olive,  orange,  mulberry  trees  thrive  admirably ;  the  vine  is  exten- 
sively cultivated  and  produces  immense  quantities  of  wine,  which,  al- 
though of  inferior  quality,  brings  an  important  revenue  to  the  country, 
In  some  part  flowers  grow  in  the  open  air  at  all  times  of  the  year,  and 

*  The  breeds  of  cattle  raised  in  Southwestern  France  are  the  Garoiinaise,  the  Baz&. 
dais,  the  Gascon,  the  Bordelais,  and  the  Pyrenees. 


FRANCE. 


271 


give  rise  to  numerous  factories  for  the  preparation  of  essential  oils  and 
perfumery,  and  to  an  important  production  of  honey. 

The  drought  is  nearly  permanent,  and  is  broken  only  by  floods  of  rain 
which  are  more  injurious  than  beneficial,  as  they  frequently  occasion 
dangerous  inundations  and  carry  away  a  good  deal  of  precious  vegeta- 
ble earths. 

In  the  Valley  of  the  Ehone  the  rainy  days  only  number  from  120  to 
130  in  the  year,  and  53  on  the  Mediterranean  shore,  and  still  the  rainfall 
is  larger  than  in  any  other  parts  of  France,  and  averages  38  and  26 
inches  respectively. 

The  climate  is  more  moderate  on  the  sea-shore  where  the  mean  tem- 
perature is  72°  in  summer  and  42°  in  winter.  In  the  interior  the  mean 
winter  temperature  is  35°. 

The  prevalent  winds  are  the  northwest  or  mistral,  a  cold  and  violent 
wind,  and  the  southeast  or  rainy  wind. 

CAMARGUE  CATTLE. 

The  only  original  cattle  breed  of  the  region  is  the  Camargue  breed. 
Its  only  interest  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  lives  in  a  semi- wild  condition  in 
the  Camargue,  a  marshy  delta  of  the  river  Ehone.  It  is  of  small  size 
and  measures  about  4  feet  4  inches ;  its  color  is  generally  black,  some- 
times red;  the  head  is  elongated;  the  horns  are  long  and  in  the  shape 
of  a  bow. 

There  are  no  stables  in  the  delta,  and  the  herds  are  allowed  to  roam 
through  the  island  at  liberty  all  the  year  round. 

When  the  young  calves  are  born  they  are  fastened  i*>  pickets  sunk  in 
the  ground  and  have  to  wait  until  their  mothers  are  willing  to  come  and 
nurse  them. 

No  use  has  ever  been  made  of  the  breed  except  for  bull-fights,  and  it 
is  rapidly  disappearing. 

At  the  present  day  there  are  not  more  than  eight  hundred  head  liv- 
ing in  Camargue.  All  the  other  cattle  found  in  the  region  is  imported 
from  other  parts  of  France,  or  Algiers,  Sardinia,  and  Italy. 

FRENCH  IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  OF  CATTLE. 

To  close  this  report  and  give  an  idea  of  the  cattle  trade  as  carried  on 
in  France,  I  have  appended  the  following  schedule  of  the  importation 
and  exportation  of  cattle  for  the  year  1882 : 

IMPOSTS. 


1 

Yearling 

i. 

Male. 

Female. 

Calves. 

Imported  from— 
Italy 

57  058 

17  749 

311 

21  127 

Algeria                                   .    .............. 

18  730 

3  192 

20  148 

1  165 

2  073 

2  126 

24  299 

Switzerland  

5  674 

966 

'406 

6,665 

4  240 

3  785 

872 

1  360 

3  382 

Holland  ................ 

3  048 

226 

Spain 

'288 

201 

598 

Other  countries  .....  ......  ................. 

264 

167 

121 

743 

Total  

83  220 

50  692 

1  740 

4  279 

4  239 

56,  814 

272 


CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 
EXPORTS. 


Countries. 

Oxen. 

Cows. 

Bulls. 

Yearlings. 

Male. 

Female. 

Colres. 

Exports  to— 

21,094 

1,196 

736 
4,  500 
1,099 
1,297 
355 

1  1,  052 
13,  OGG 

9,505 
5,  000 
8,  272 

847 
83 

02 

2,107 
508 

1,  003 

<3,  439 

721 

65 

_7i 
1,  065 

88 
10 

1,370 
273 

1,210 

Total 

40,  422 

29,  943 

1,223 

4,258 

9,183 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Marseilles,  February  5,  1885. 


J.  S.  MARTIN,  JR., 

Vice-  Consul. 


CATTLE  EAISING  II?  THE  SOUTHWEST  OF  FRANCE.* 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  ROOSEVELT,  OF  BORDEAUX. 

In  the  departments  of  France  forming  the  consular  district  of  Bor- 
deaux there  are  five  principal  breeds  of  cattle,  viz,  the  Garonnais, 
Bazadais,  Bordelais,  Laiidais,  and  Limousin. 

ORIGIN   OF  THE  BREEDS. 

Garonnais. — Native  of  the  country  through  which  the  Garonne  River 
flows ;  the  most  abundant  breed  of  the  Southwest  of  France  ;  has  always 
been  known  in  the  country,  and  has  not  been  crossed. 

Bazadais. — Issued  from  the  Pyrenean  breed  and  imported,  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  sixteenth  century,  into  the  environs  of  the  town  of  Bazas ; 
has  a  great  resemblance  to  the  Garonnais,  and  has  never  been  crossed; 
is  considered  one  of  the  oldest  breeds  of  France. 

Bordelais. — A  cross-breed  of  Brittany  and  Dutch ;  was  imported  into 
the  locality  at  a  remote  period  5  is  preserved  from  degeneration  by  the 
constant  renewal  of  the  blood. 

Landais. — Issued  from  the  Pyrenean  breed,  and  raised  only  in  the 
department  of  the  landes  (moorlands) ;  has  undergone  the  changes  nat- 
urally due  to  the  difference  of  climate  and  soil,  and  has  become  adapted 
to  the  country,  where,  under  the  local  influences,  it  has  almost  become 
a  new  breed ;  has  not  been  crossed. 

Limousin. — Raised  especially  in  the  environs  of  the  town  of  Limoges; 
seems  original  to  the  country ;  has  not  been  crossed. 

DESCRIPTIONS  AND   GENERAL  CONSIDERATIONS. 

Description  of  the  Garonnais. — Buff  color,  sometimes  darker  about  the 
head,  hoof,  and  tail;  bull,, 5  feet  4  inches;  cow,  5  feet  tall,  without  being 

*NOTE  BY  CONSUL  ROOSEVELT. — This  report  is  compiled  from  information  derived 
from  the  municipal  veterinary  surgeon  in  charge  of  the  slaughter-house  of  the  city 
of  Bordeaux,  M.  Marcel  Courregelongne,  one  of  the  most  eminent  cattle-breeders  of 
this  department,  and  also  secretary  of  the  Society  of  Agriculture  of  the  Gironde ;  from 
the  manager  of  the  General  Milk  Company  of  Bordeaux,  the  municipal  records,  the 
newspapers  of  tlrs  locality,  and  from  the  most  reliable  authors. 


FRANCE.  273 

"high  above  ground;77  very  thick  bones  and  strong  limbs;  thick  mus- 
cles, long  body,  well  supported;  deep  but  rather  narrow  chest,  flat  ribs, 
rather  thick  neck,  fore  quarters  more  bulky  and  heavier  than  hind  onesj 
rather  flat  thighs;  thick  skin,  thick  flat  horns  bent  forward  and  gener- 
ally downward. 

This  fine  breed  forms  the  wealth  of  the  Southwest  of  France,  to  which 
it  gives  its  work  and  meat.  Strong,  docile,  and  handy,  it  works  well 
and  much,  but  with  a  slow  pace. 

The  ox  takes  flesh  easily;  the  cow  hardly  has  milk  enough  to  feed  her 
calf. 

Raising  Garonnaise  calves.— It  the  calf  is  intended  to  make  a  beast  of 
burden,  he  is  fed,  until  four  months  old,  by  his  mother  and  at  the  same 
time  by  a  Brittany  cow  used  as  assistant  nurse  (that  cow  assists  in  feed- 
ing three  calves),  then  he  receives  a  little  bran  until  six  months  old,  when 
he  is  weaned.  He  is  then  sent  grazing  all  day  and  stabled  at  night;  he 
receives  besides  green  or  dry  forage,  according  to  the  season.  Such  is 
the  diet  he  will  follow  up  to  his  last  day.  When  thirteen  months  old, 
he  is  castrated  and  begins  to  be  broken  to  the  yoke;  from  that  age  to 
that  of  two  years  and  a  half,  he  is  employed  to  do  the  light  work  of  the 
farm ;  from  two  and  a  half  to  five  or  six  years  old,  he  is  put  to  the  coarser 
works  of  agriculture,  then  stabled  to  be  fattened.  The  fattening  begins 
in  February  and  is  finished  at  the  end  of  September.  The  animal  re- 
ceives at  first  radishes  and  turnips,  which  are  chopped  with  straw,  then 
purple  clover  and  corn  fodder;  to  that  green  forage  is  added  bran,  corn, 
flour,  and  rape  or  linseed  cake;  during  all  the  time  of  fattening  the  ox 
is  not  allowed  to  go  out. 

A  calf  three  and  a  half  or  four  months  old  is  sold  for  the  stall  at  from 
818  to  $30. 

If  the  calf  is  intended  to  be  kept  for  reproduction,  he  is  weaned  only 
when  nine  months  old,  and  up  to  that  time  has  three  nurses  besides  a 
special  food  of  meal  or  flcury  substances;  he  is  then  sent  grazing  dur- 
ing the  day  and  stabled  at  tiight;  when  ten  or  eleven  months  old  ho  may 
be" sold  for  $GO  or  $70;  he  begins  to  serve  when  fifteen  months  old,  and 
when  he  reaches  the  age  of  thirty  months  he  becomes  too  heavy  for  cover- 
ing; he  is  then  fattened  without  being  castrated,  and  sold  to  the  butcher 
at  the  price  of  7  cents  per  live  pound.  The  cows  are  covered  when  fif- 
teen months  old;  they  go  to  pasture  during  the  day,  and  receive  a  ration 
i  the  stable  where  they  are  kept  at  night;  this  ration  consists  of  green 
^r  dry  forage  according  to  the  season. 

Working  Garonnaise'  cattle. — The  cows  work  like  the  oxen.  When 
farrow  or  too  old  to  work,  they  are  fattened  and  sold  to  the  butcher, 
who  pays  about  7  cents  per  live  pound. 

An  ox  at  the  age  of  maturity,  five  or  six  years  old,  weighs  1,100  or 
1,200  pounds.  After  having  been  taken  away  from  the  work  and  fat- 
tened he  weighs  from  1.300  to  1,400  pounds.  He  is  then  sold  to  the 
butcher  at  from  $150  to  $175,  and  yields  55  per  cent,  of  the  live  weight 
in  meat.  When  specially  fattened  for  the  stall  the  ox  weighs  up  to 
2,500  pounds,  at  about  four  years  of  age.  Its  flesh  has  a  fine  grain. 

A  pair  of  working  oxen,  from  four  and  one-half  to  five  years  old, 
are  sold  at  from  82CO  to  $300. 

A  pair  of  Garonnais  oxen  can  pull  a  cart-load  (two- wheeled  cart)  of 
10,000  pounds  weight  for  12£  miles  in  one  day,  but  can  work  at  that 
rate  only  three  times  a  week.  The  working  pace  is  about  1}  miles  per 
hour.  The  working  animal  is  fed  on  bran,  dry  hay,  and  sometimes  a 
little  ration  of  oats. 

H.  Ex.  51 18 


274  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Meat  product  of  Garonnais  cattle. — The  following  is  the  product  of  two 
young  oxen  which  had  received  premiums  at  a  cattle  show : 

No.  1,  three  years  and  ten  mouths  old : 

Live  weight  at  the  slaughter-house pounds..  1,848 

Weight  of  the  four  quarters do....      848 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  four  quarters  to  the  live  weight per  cent..  62-91 

Weight  of  the  tallow pounds..       110 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  tallow  to  the  four  quarters per  cent..  12-83 

Weight  of  the  skin pounds..      107 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  sMn  to  the  four  q  uarters per  cent . .  12-96 

No*.  2,  three  years  and  eleven  months  old : 

Live  weight  at  the  slaughter-hoiffee f pounds..  2,176 

Weight  of  the  four  quarters do 1,366 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  four  quarters.to  the  live  weight '. per  cent. .  68-78 

Weight  of  the  tallow pounds..      162 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  tallow  to  the  four  quarters per  cent . .  13-19 

Weight  of  the  skin pounds..       136 

Proportionate  weight  of  the  skin  to  the  four  quarters per  cent . .  10-00 

Garonnais  cross-breeds. — An  author  says  that  this  breed  deserves  the 
name  of  u  Shorthorn  of  the  South,"  having  the  same  form  and  bearing 
and  the  same  propensity  to  fatten  when  young.  It  is  supposed  to  be  a 
cross-breed  of  Garonnais  and  Dutch.  According  to  reliable  documents 
large  numbers  of  Garonnais  were  exported  to  England  in  the  fourteenth 
and  fifteenth  centuries,  when  the  South  of  France  was  occupied  by  the 
English.  This  breed  has  never  been  crossed  by  any  foreign  blood.  It 
is  left  to  itself  for  reproduction,  the  raisers  hardly  taking  any  care  to 
secure  good  bulls.  The  cattle-breeders  say  that  this  breed  should  not 
be  crossed  in  its  native  country,  because  that  would  make  it  Jose  the 
qualities  which  render  it  particularly  adapted  to  the  locality.  All  cross- 
'  ings  hitherto  tried  have  proved  complete  failures.  This  breed  repre- 
sents about  two-thirds  of  the  cattle  in  the  department. 

Garonnaise  grazing  country. — The  altitude  of  the  country  is  about  250 
feet  above  sea-level.  The  mean  temperature  is  56°  F. — in  summer,  72° ; 
in  winter,  43°.  The  soil  belongs  to  the  secondary  and  tertiary  periods. 

The  agricultural  soil  is  composed  of — 

Acres. 

Limestone 132,750 

Rich  compost 32,800 

Gravel 1,700 

Stony  ground 18, 900 

Sandy  ground 27,500 

Heathy  ground ' 12,350 

The  soil  of  the  plain  and  great  valleys  is  very  fertile.  The  plain  of 
the  Garonne,  of  proverbial  fertility,  lies  on  alluvial  ground  12  feet  deep. 
The  culture  of  the  ground  is  triennial ;  first  year,  wheat  and  cereals  of 
spring  and  autumn  growth  ;  second  year,  green  forage ;  third  year, 
hemp,  tobacco,  rape,  and  linseed. 

THE  BAZADAIS  CATTLE. 

Description. — Dapple  dark  gray  ;  nose,  anus,  and  inner  part  of  thighs 
white;  eyes  encircled  with  white  hair;  some  of  cows  are  light  gray. 
Bull  4  feet  8  inches,  cow  4  feet  4  inches  high.  The  animal  is  compact, 
"close  to  the  ground,"  with  thin,  dense  bones;  powerful  muscles  ended 
by  strong  sinews;  harmonious  and  wonderfully  balanced- body ;  loin? 
very  well  attached .  The  animal  is  built  for  fatigue  and  endurance,  with 
broad  and  neat  articulations ;  hind  quarters  broad,  well  made,  with 
thick  flesh  and  muscles  from  rump  to  knee ;  hoofs  hard  and  of  a  good 
quality ;  head  short,  broad  at  the  forehead  5  horns  well  attached;  neck 


FEANCE.  275 

short;  ribs  round;  stands  remarkably  plumb  on  his  legs;  tail  well 
attached;  skin  rather  thick,  of  a  light  tissue,  ^ith  somewhat  rough 
hair.  Being  energetic  and  having  a  quick  pace,  these  animals  are  emi- 
nently fit  for  work.  Yoked  to  enormous  two-wheeled  carts,  they  carry 
prodigious  loads  under  a  scorching  sun,  and  sometimes  with  a  sandy 
dust  which  renders  their  work  very  painful. 

With  all  the  qualities  of  a  beast  of  burden,  the  Bazadais  is  also  good 
for  the  butchery,  and,  though  weighing  less  than  the  Garonuais,  is 
frequently  rewarded  at  the  fat-cattle  shows.  It  is  preferred  for  the 
butchery,  being  in  general  fatter  than  the  Garonnais ;  its  flesh  is  better, 
gives  more  of  the  choice  cuts,  and  yields  a  greater  average  of  meat — 
more  than  60  per  cent,  of  the  live  weight. 

The  ox  takes  flesh  much  more  easily  than  that  of  the  Garonnais  breed. 

The  cow  hardly  has  enough  milk  to  feed  her  calf. 

Basadais  calves. — If  the  calf  is  intended  to  make  a  beast  of  burden  he 
is  treated  exactly  as  the  Garonnais ;  sometimes  sent  grazing,  but  gener- 
ally kept  in  the  stable.  He  is  castrated  when  twelve  months  old,  and 
begins  to  be  broken  in  three  months  after ;  he  is  then  used  for  light 
plowing  and'  harrowings.  When  three  years  old  he  is  yoked  with  a 
companion  to  a  two-wheeled  cart,  and  carries  2,500  pounds,  but  for 
short  distances  only.  When  four  and  a  half  years  old  he  is  used  for 
hard  work  till  the  age  of  six  or  seven,  without  showing  any  sign  of  great 
fatigue. 

Weight  and  value  of  Bazadais  oxen. — A  pair  of  Bazadais  oxen  can  pull 
10,000  pounds  weight  for  12J  to  13  miles  in  one  day,  but  can  work  at 
that  rate  only  three  times  in  a  week.  The  working  pace  is  about  2  miles 
per  hour.  The  working  animal  is  fed  on  bran,  dry  hay,  and  sometimes  a 
small  ration  of  oats.  A  pair  of  working  Bazadais  oxen  from  four  and  a 
half  to  five  years  old  are  sold  from  $220  to  $260. 

One-third  of  the  Bazadais  working  oxen  are  used  for  carting  heavy 
loads,  one-fifth  are  sold  for  the  vineyards  of  Medoc  and  Sauterne,  the 
rest  are  employed  for  agricultural  purposes  in  the  Bazadais  region. 
This  latter  portion  is  fattened  when  from  four  and  a  half  to  six  years  old, 
whilst  those  belonging  to  heavy  works  are  fattened  only  from  the  sixth 
or  seventh  year  of  their  age.  The  fattening  begins  in  May  and  termi- 
nates at  the  end  of  February.  From  May  to  October  the  animal  is  fed 
on  green  forage,  corn  fodder,  vetch,  and  purple  clover.  From  October 
he  is  fed  on  hay,  bran,  corn  meal,  rape,  and  linseed  cake. 

A  Bazadais  ox  at  the  age  of  maturity  (five  or  six  years)  weighs  from 
900  to  1,000  pounds ;  after  being  fattened  as  above  he  weighs  from  1,100 
to  1,200  pounds,  and  is  then  sold  to  the  butcher  at  the  rate  of  12  cents 
per  pound  live  weight. 

The  cows  work  like  oxen.  The  calves  are  bought  for  the  butchery  from 
$18  to  $30  a  head ;  their  flesh  is  very  white  and  greatly  praised.  When 
raised  expressly  to  be  fattened,  on  reaching  its  full  growth,  the  animal 
weighs  about  2,000  pounds. 

In  the  southwest  of  France  the  Bazadais  represents  about  one-third 
of  the  bovine  species  and  the  Garonnais  two-thirds. 

The  Bazadais  as  a  lone-malting  animal. — A  reliable  author  mentions  as 
a  known  fact  that  p  the  country  where  the  Bazadais  is  raised  the  horses 
become  small  and  slender,  with  small  carcasses,  whilst  the  oxen  become 
compact,  thick,  and  long ;  in  other  terms,  in  the  same  country,  under 
the  same  influences,  and  with  the  food  produced  by  the  same  soil,  the 
bony  system  of  the  horse  is  reduced  to  the  smallest  proportions,  whereas 
that  of  the  oxen  takes  a  great  development.  This  would  tend  to  prove 
that  the  Bazadais  oxen  have  a  particular  tendency  and  aptness  to  as- 


276  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

eimilate  the  calcareous  salts  contained  in  the  pastures.  If  the  Bazadais 
ox  is  really  endowed  with  the  faculty  of  "  easily  making"  bones,  it  would 
be  a  useful  importation  into  countries  the  soil  of  which  is  too  poor  in 
calcareous  salts  to  properly  feed  beasts  of  burden;  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  if  it  was  imported  into  countries  the  soil  of  which  would  supply 
abundant  calcareous  salts,  the  frame  might  be,  in  the  course  of  time, 
developed  to  a  great  size  and  power. 

The  Bazadais  grazing  grounds. — The  altitude  of  the  country  in  which 
that  breed  is  raised  is  270  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  It  is  com- 
posed of  flat  grounds,  with  little  valleys,  where  spring  many  calcareous 
waters.  The  mean  temperature  is  62°  F. — in  summer,  69° ;  in  winter, 
43°.  The  soil  belongs  to  the  superior  miocene  formation,  characterized 
by  the  shell-marls,  containing  all  the  varieties  of  ccrites  with  yellow 
conchiferous  sands  and  yellow  or  gray  clay,  often  characterized  by  the 
Ostrea  undata  and  Ostrea  crispata.  The  ground  is  undulated  and  varied. 
On  the  same  farm  clay,  sand,  gravel,  limestone,  &c.,  are  met  with.  The 
underground  is  as  varied  as  the  arable  ground ;  it  is  composed  of  clay, 
flint,  stone,  and  limestone,  but  is  not  deep. 

The  culture  is  biennial — first  year  wheat  and  rye,  second  year  corn, 
potatoes,  beet-root,  and  spring  forage ;  besides  every  farm  has  about 
one-third  of  its  extent  in  artificial  meadows. 

THE  EORDELAIS  CATTLE. 

Description. — Black  and  white  (piebald).  Bull,  4  feet  6  inches  ;  cow, 
4  feet  2  inches  high.  Hind  quarters  developed  as  compared  to  the  fore 
quarters ;  thin  limbs ;  small  bones ;  angular  forms  ;  pelvis  very  wide ; 
neck  thin  and  almost  fleshless ;  head  fine ;  horns  thin,  black,  bent  for- 
ward, and  often  rough;  udder  expanded  without  being  fleshy;  milk 
abundant. 

Qualities  of  the  Girondc  Bordelais. — This  breed  was  imported  into  the 
Gironde  many  years  ago,  for  dairy  purposes  solely,  being  the  result  of 
crossing  between  the  breeds  of  Brittany  and  Holland ;  it  was  and  is  still 
maintained  by  constant  importations  of  Dutch  bulls.  It  can  hardly  bo 
called  a  breed,  as  it  does  not  reproduce  itself  exactly.  It  is  compara- 
tively scarce,  being  used  only  for  the  dairy.  Of  the  Brittany  cow,  from 
which  it  originates,  cut  22,  gives  a  pretty  correct  idea  of  it.  The  female 
only  is  known  and  described,  as  the  young  males  are  sold  for  the  stall. 
The  bulls  and  cows  when  too  old  to  breed  are  sent  to  the  slaughter- 
houses, but  the  meat  is  of  inferior  quality.  The  weight  of  the  cow  is 
about  500  pounds  when  at  maturity,  4  years  old ;  it  is  then  sold  at  from 
$80  to  $100.  The  price  of  the  bull  is  $80;  after  two  years'  service  he  is 
sold  to  the  butcher. 

The  Bordelais  as  millccrs. — This  is  the  only  breed  which  provides  the 
department  of  the  Girondo  with  milk.  After  calving  the  cows  give  4| 
gallons  of  milk  a  day  for  one  month.  Afterwards  it  gradually  goes  down 
to  2  gallons.  The  average  quantity  given  by  one  of  these  cows  amounts 
to  about  050  gallons  per  annum,  with  a  proportion  of  2.90  per  cent,  of 
butter  and  3.35  per  cent,  of  dry  caseine. 

The  Bordelais  not  suitable  for  exportation. — The  Bordelais  could  not 
bo  profitably  exported — (1)  because  it  degenerates  if  not  renewed  by 
frequent  crossing;  (2)  because  as  a  milker  it  is  not  so  good  as  the 
Normandy  cow. 

The  grazing-grounds  of  the  Bordelais. — The  altitude  of  the  country  is 
about  150  feet  above  sea-level. 

It  is  generally  composed  of  flat  and  undulating  ground.  The  arable 
is  composed  of  clay,  pebble,  limestone,  and  sand.  The  mean  tern- 


FRANCE.  277 

perature  is  57°  F. — in  summer,  69°;  in  winter,  43°.    The  soil  belongs 
to  the  Tertiary  period. 

Feeding  and  housing  Bordelais  cores. — The  cows  of  the  Bordelais  breed 
are  left  in  the  fields  day  and  night  as  long  as  the  weather  permits; 
when  stabled  (in  cold  or  snowy  weather)  they  are  fed  on  second-crop 
hay,  coarse  cabbage,  and  any  kind  of  green  food  that  may  be  had  cheap. 
Those  kept  by  rich  people  'have  rations  of  bran  added  to  the  above. 
When  the  pea  season  sets  in,  very  large  quantities  of  that  vegetable  are 
daily  shelled  in  the  city  of  Bordeaux  at  the  establishments  for  preserv- 
ing vegetables,  and  the  pods  are  sold  for  the  cows,  who  are  very  fond  of 
them.  That  food  gives  a  particularly  sweet  taste  and  pleasant  flavor  to 
the  milk. 

EXPERIMENTAL  CATTLE-FEEDING  IN  FRANCE. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  note  the  following  remarks,  being  the  result 
of  experiments  made  by  a  breeder  of  dairy  cows,  although  such  experi- 
ments have  not  been  made  on  local  breeds. 

To  properly  keep  cattle  in  France  requires  every  day  1  pound  11 
ounces  of  hay,  or  the  equivalent  of  it,  for  each  100  pounds  weight  of 
the  live  animal.  An  animal,  to  be  completely  satisfied,  requires  every 
day  one-thirtieth  of  his  weight.  Besides  that  one-thirtiei"u  in  dry  sub- 
stances, he  wants  four-thirtieths  of  water,  or  any  other  liquid  contained 
in  the  food.  If,  to  be  completely  satisfied,  a  cow  requires  a  daily  food 
of  3J  per  cent,  of  its  weight,  and  if  If  are  necessary  to  sustain  life,  it 
ensues  that  the  half  of  the  ration  is  keeping  food  and  the  other  half  is 
productive  food.  Each  pound  of  productive  food  gives  one  pound  of 
milk,  or  increases  by  nearly  1  ounce  the  weight  of  the  calf  in  the 
mother's  womb ;  and  for  the  animals  which  are  being  fattened,  10  pounds 
of  forage  give  1  pound  of  increase  in  weight.  The  calf  at  its  birth 
weighs  one-tenth  of  its  mother's  weight.  During  the  first  month  after 
calving,  the  cow  gives  a  weight  of  milk  equal  to  3£  per  cent,  of  her 
weight.  Afterwards  the  milk  diminishes  gradually. 

THE  LANDAIS  CATTLE. 

Description.— Buff  color,  with  a  lighter  hue  around  the  eyes  and  the 
extremities.  In  some  animals  that  color  is  darker,  and  sometimes  tinted 
with  bay.  This  breed  is  much  smaller  than  any  of  the  before  mentioned 
the  bull  being  only  4  feet  4  inches  and  the  cow  4  feet  high.  It  is  a 
small  or  rather  mean  variety  of  the  great  Pyrenean  family,  hardly  in- 
teresting to  others  than  the  inhabitants  of  those  barren  countries.  The 
animal  is  small,  compact,  well-shaped,  energetic,  and  quick,  with  long 
thin  horns,  dead  white,  with  black  tips.  It  is  extremely  sober,  and  is 
noted  for  its  endurance ;  its  fine  and  nervous  limbs,  like  those  of  the 
Devon  breed,  have  a  peculiar  character  and  prove  its  swiftness.  The 
animal  is  kept  in  good  condition,  in  spite  of  hard  plowings,  with  very 
little  forage,  and  that  of  the  worst  kind.  The  cow,  though  not  strong, 
is  equally  enduring,  and  without  extra  food  works  very  hard,  even 
whilst  feeding  her  calf.  The  animal  trots  very  well  without  losing 
breath  ;  oxen  unaccustomed  to  the  cart  have  been  known  to  travel  from 
47  to  50  miles  in  one  day  and  night. 

A  pair  of  Landais  oxen  in  working  condition,  four  and  a  half  to  five 
years  old,  are  sold  at  $180  to  $200.  When  specially  fattened  the  ox 
may  reach  the  weight  of  1,600  pounds.  In  spite  of  its  qualities  this 
breed  is  not  of  sufficient  value  to  export. 

The  grazing  grounds  of  the  Landaise. — The  altitude  of  the  country  is 
160  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 


278  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

Flat  and  barren  ground  (moorlands).  Mean  temperature  in  summer, 
72°  5  mean  temperature  in  winter,  44°. 

THE  LIMOUSIN  CATTLE. 

Description. — Buff  color,  with  a  paler  hue  at  tlie  inner"  part  of  the 
limbs ;  large  soft  eyes,  surrounded,  as  well  as  the  muzzle,  by  a  whitish 
circle.  Smaller  than  the  Garonnais,  but  larger  than  the  Bazadais,  thus 
giving  an  average  height  of  about  4  feet  G  inches  for  the  cow  and  5 
feet  for  the  bull.  There  is  a  great  variety  in  the  size  of  the  animals, 
owing  to  the  places  where  they  are  raised.  They  Jiave  a  softer  skin  ano! 
are  much  finer  and  less  bony  than  the  Garonnais.  Body  rather  long, 
withers  high  and  not  muscular;  hind  quarters  narrow;  short  neck; 
thick  head ;  horns  pale,  with  brownish  tips,  flattened  towards  the  base, 
not  always  well  bent,  turned  forward  and  often  downward.  The  cow 
is  small,  delicately  shaped,  and  would  be  remarkably  fine  if  not  over- 
worked. She  has  round  ribs  and  well-made  hips;  is  very  spirited,  and 
works  much  more  quickly  than  the  ox,  which  goes  slowly  and  lazily. 
The  cow  gives  scarcely  any  milk.  The  cause  of  this  difference  is  that 
the  cow  is  the  exclusive  product  of  the  locality,  which  is  poor,  whereas 
the  male  calves  and  young  oxen  are  the  objects  of  an  active  trade,  and 
are  bought  by  persons  who  take  them  into  richer  countries,  where  they 
are  fed  preparatory  for  work  and  the  slaughter-house.  The  difference 
in  the  diet  makes  the  difference  in  the  size.  The  Limousin  makes  flesh 
more  rapidly  than  the  Garonnais,  and  the  quality  of  the  meat  is  superior. 

A  pair  of  working  oxen  bring  from  $240  to  $280.  When  specially 
fattened  a  Limousin  ox  will  weigh  about  2,200  pounds. 

Grazing  grounds  of  the  Limousin. — The  altitude  of  the  country  is 
300  feet  above  sea-level. 

Highest  temperature  in  summer  90°;  lowest  temperature  in  winter, 
10°.  Soil  of  the  primitive  period,  formed  by  the*  desegregation  of 
granitic,  gneissoid,  porphyric,  and  feldspathic  stones. 

The  arable  ground  is  clayish,  gravelly,  or  sandy,  without  a  sufficient 
thickness,  which  causes  many  large  plains  to  be  covered  with  heath. 
The  substratum  is  clayish  or  loamy,  rather  permeable. 

The  cultivation  is  biennial.  First  year,  fallow,  black  wheat,  radish, 
and  potatoes;  second  year,. rye  or  wheat. 

The  soil  is  undulating,  the  climate  damp  and  cold,  and  liable  to  great 
variations  of  temperature. 

Besides  the  above  principal  breeds,  this  district  contains  a  few  other 
of  lesser  importance  which  never  come  on  the  market  of  Bordeaux,  and 
which,  for  that  reason,  are  not  known. 

HOW  TO  EXPORT  CATTLE   FROM  BORDEAUX  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  best  and  only  method  of  direct  exportation  to  the  United  States 
from  Bordeaux  is  by  the  Bordeaux  Steamship  Company,  which  makes 
regular  monthly  voyages.  The  conditions  of  the  company,  submitted  to 
the  emigration  laws,  are  the  following : 

(1)  Only  ten  head  of  cattle  can  be  carried  at  a  time. 

(2)  The  animals  will  be  placed  on  deck. 

(3)  The  freight  for  each  animal  will  be  $80,  including  shipping,  land- 
ing, attendance  on  board  during  the  passage,  and  accommodation. 

(4)  The  food  will  be  provided  by  the  shipper.    The  daily  food  re- 
quired for  an  animal  on  board  is  10  pounds  of  hay  and  8  pounds  of 
bran.    The  wholesale  price  of  hay  is  about  80  cents  per  100  pounds, 


FRANCE.  279 

bran  $1.60  per  100  pounds.     Counting  fifteen  days  from  date  of  ship- 
ping to  that  of  landing,  both  inclusive,  each  animal  would  eat : 

10  pounds  of  hay,  X  15  =  150 $1  20 

8  pounds  of  bran  X  15  =  120 1  92 

3  12 

This  added  to  .the  freight  makes  a  total  of  $83.12  per  head.  The 
prices  of  frieght  of  the  Bordeaux  Steamship  Company  applies  to  choice 
animals  carefully  attended  to,  but  the  freight  of  animals  sent  in  cargoes 
by  American  ships  would  be  much  cheaper. 

FRENCH  BREEDS  SUITABLE  FOR  EXPORT  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Among  the  breeds .  hereinbefore  mentioned  only  two  might  perhaps 
be  worth  importing  into  the  United  States,  the  Garonnais  and  Bazadais. 
The  former,  on  account  of  its  size  and  powerful  frame ;  the  latter,  on  ac- 
count of  its  energy  as  a  beast  of  burden,  of  its  yield  in  good  meat,  and 
of  its  wonderful  power  of  assimilating  food.  The  cost  price  of  a  couple 
of  choice'  Garonnais  would  be  about  $300,  that  of  a  couple  of  choice 
Bazadais  about  $260. 

EXPORT  OF  AMERICAN  BEEF  CATTLE  TO  BORDEAUX. 

It  would  not  be  advisable  to  import  any  breeding  animals  into  this 
district,  because  all  the  crossings  hitherto  tried  with  the  local  breeds 
have  proved  complete  failures,  and  consequently  the  cattle  raisers  are 
not  inclined  to  try  new  experiments ;  if  they  were  so  inclined,  they 
would  choose  bulls  belonging  to  breeds  known  in  France,  and  not  pur- 
chase animals  of  a  breed  unknown  to  them. 

If  the  importation  of  breeding  animals  is  not  likely  to  give  any  good 
result,  the  importation  of  live  stock  into  Bordeaux  for  the  butchery 
would,  on  the  contrary,  meet  the  requirements  of  the  market,  and  the 
probabilities  are  that  the  introduction  of  such  animals,  if  arriving  in 
good  condition,  would  be  a  profitable  speculation. 

In  order  to  elucidate  the  matter,  so  as  to  Dring  the  question  within 
the  comprehension  of  any  person  concerned,  I  shall  first  explain  the 
manner  in  which  the  city  of  Bordeaux  is  supplied  with  meat,  the  part 
acted  by  the  commissioners,  who  are  the  intermediates  between  the 
producers  and  the  butchers,  their  systematic  removal  of  live  stock  from 
the  market  in  order  to  raise  the  prices,  &c.  This  will  be  seen  in  the 
following  extract  of  the  newspaper  La  Victoirc  of  Bordeaux,  of  Decem- 
ber 1G,  1880 : 

Generally  on  arriving  at  Bordeaux  the  dealer  cannot  wait  until  his  stock  is  sold 
and  paid  for ;  not  being  rich  he  requires  ready  money  for  other  business.  The  commis- 
sioner is  there,  ready  at  hand ;  he  examines  the  cattle,  values  it  after  his  own  fashion, 
tries  to  hint  that  the  butchers  are  well  provided,  the  market  bad  and  overstocked, 
&c. ;  ho  advances  to  the  dealer  a  certain  PUOJ  of  money,  about  three-fourths  of  the 
value  of  the  cattle ;  but  often,  to  end  sooner  and  not  to  wait  ten  or  fifteen  days  for 
the  settlement  of  the  sale,  the  merchant  prefers  to  transact  for  a  trifling  profit  and 
gives  up  the  cattle  to  the  commissioner,  who  then  makes  the  best  of  it. 

The  same  article  mentions  the  punishment  which  the  commissioners 
inflict  upon  the  dealers  who  do  not  prove  sufficiently  accommodating  : 

Frequently  the  commissioners  send  their  employes  to  the  fairs  of  the  region  in  order 
to  prevent  sales  from  the  dealers  who  were  unyielding  to  them. 

The  part  of  the  commissioner  is  thus  defined  in  La  Victoire  of  De- 
cember 3,  1880,  by  a  letter  of  Mr.  Olagnier,  a  municipal  councilor,  who 
made  a  special  study  of  the  question: 

The  commissioners  are  at  the  same  time  the  bankers  of  the  producers,  from  whom 
they  most  often  discount  the  price  of  the  cattle  which  is  sent  to  them  for  sale;  and  of 


280  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

the  butchers,  to  whom  they  sell  the  same  cattle  on  a  credit  of  seven  or  eleven  days; 
they,  besides,  are  merchants,  buying  and  selling  for  their  own  account,  and  then, 
being  holders  of  nearly  all  the  cattle  intended  for  the  supply  of  our  city's  market, 
they  can,  owing  to  their  small  number,  maintain  the  prices  at  a  high  figure.  I  have 
contended,  and  the  fact  is  verified  by  two  members  of  the  municipal  council  who 
raise  and  sell  cattle,  that  the  commissioners  of  Bordeaux  pay  for  cattle  a  lower  price 
than  that  paid  by  the  commissioners  who  supply  the  markets  of  Paris,  while  it  is  a 
well-known  fact  that  beef  is  cheaper  in  Paris  than  in  Bordeaux. 

Consulting  the  records  of  the  municipal  council  I  read  in  the  report  of 
the  sitting  of  November  12, 1880,  the  following  statements  corroborat- 
ing the  preceding  one : 

Correspondents  and  at  the  same  time  bankers  of  producers  and  of  the  butchers, 
and  being,  besides,  merchants,  they  centralize  the  cattle,  deliver  to  the  market  only  the 
number  required  to  maintain  the  highest  prices,  and  by  the  influence  which  they  ex- 
ercise on  the  butchers  by  advancing  them  money  they  paralyze  the  spring  of  compe- 
tition, which  is  necessary  to  reduce  prices  to  their  real  level. 

At  the  sitting  of  the  municipal  council  of  February  12,  1880,  one  of 
the  members,  M.  Min-Barabraham,  read  reliable  documents  showing 
that  the  commissioners  paid  their  own  price  for  the  live  cattle,  and  that, 
owing  to  their  then  scarcity  of  forage,  the  owners  were  obliged  to  get 
rid  of  their  cattle  at  unremunerative  prices,  and  after  having  quoted 
the  report  of  a  special  commission  named  by  the  municipality  to  inves- 
tigate the  matter,  the  report  showed  that  meat  in  the  city  of  Bordeaux 
was  dearer  than  in  Paris  or  any  other  large  city  of  France.  He  found 
that  the  price  of  meat  was  always  increasing,  "  even  in  the  years  when 
the  price  of  cattle  had  obviously  gone  down  on  account  of  bad  forage 
harvests."  M.  Min-Barabraham  mentioned  that  as  far  back  as  1870 
he  called  the  attention  of  the  council  to  the  high  price  of  beef;  that  a 
commission  was  then  ordered  to  inquire  into  the  causes  of  such  dear- 
ness  and  try  to  remedy  it ;  that  in  1874  attention  was  directed  to  the 
constant  and  unreasonable  increase  of  prices,  when  the  mayor  appointed 
a  new  special  commission  to  investigate  the  former,  and  also  to  find 
the  means  of  admitting  free  competition.  This  commission,  however, 
did  not  prevent  the  continual  increase  of  prices.  The  honorable  coun- 
cilor then  said : 

When  one  of  the  branches  of  trade,  that  which  serves  the  public  alimentation,  is  in 
the  hands  of  eight  or  ten  commissioners,  who  are  at  the  same  time  speculators  and 
mei chants,  who  can  at  their  will  cause  a  rise  by  allowing  on  the  market  only  the  cat- 
tle that  they  wish ;  who  hold  in  their  power  a  majority  of  the  butchers  by  the  weekly 
credits  which  they  (the  commissioners)  grant  them,  I  say  that  this  is  no  longer  liberty, 
it  is  monopoly. 

The  last,  word  seems  to  be  the  alarm-cry  uttered  by  everybody  in  Bor- 
deaux for  the  last  twelve  years. 

On  the  12th  of  November,  1880,  Mr.  Olagnier,  a  municipal  councilor, 
presented  a  petition  by  which  4,500  inhabitants,  in  presence  of  the  exces- 
sive prices  reached  by  the  butchers7  meat  in  town,  claimed  the  re-estab- 
ment  of  taxed  prices ;  and  another  member  of  the  council  mentioned 
that  for  the  last  twenty  years  the  price  of  meat  had  more  than  doubled. 

The  consequences  to  be  drawn  from  all  the  preceding  is  that  the  com- 
missioners monopolize  the  cattle  trade  at  Bordeaux ;  that  they  admit 
to  the  market  only  the  small  number  of  animals  required  to  maintain 
the  highest  prices;  that  the  cattle-raisers,  merchants,  and  butchers  are 
at  their  mercy ;  that  the  municipality  have  for  years  been  constantly 
in  search  of  the  means  of  checking  the  monopoly;  that  the  public  is 
deprived  of  the  most  necessary  article  of  food  on  account  of  the  small 
quantity  of  meat  sent  to  the  stalls,  and  especially  of  high  prices  de- 
manded for  it. 


FRANCE.  281 

In  presence  of  such  a  state  of  things,  my  opinion  is  that  the  im- 
portation of  live  stock  from  the  United  States  would  prove  a  paying 
speculation,  as  it  would  meet  the  most  urgent  wants  of  a  populatkm  of 
221,000  inhabitants,  consuming. yearly  22,000  oxen.  If  the  monopoly 
was  destroyed,  and  if  meat  became  more  abundant  and  cheaper,  this 
amount  would  increase  50  per  cent. 

COST    OF   INTRODUCING,    STABLING,  AND    FEEDING    CATTLE  IN  BOR- 
DEAUX. 

The  cost  of  introduction,  stabling,  keeping,  &c.,  of  the  imported  ani- 
mals from  the  day  of  their  arrival  to  that  of  their  sale  to  the  butcher, 
is  as  follows : 

Customs  dues,  per  head,  $2.89,  if  imported  direct.  Town  dues,  4SJ 
cents  per  100  pounds'  weight.  All  animals  intended  to  be  slaughtered 
must  be  sent  to  the  official  pens,  where  it  costs  for  oxen  29  cents  per 
head,  and  for  cows  19  cents  per  head  for  the  first  twenty-four  hours, 
food,  litter,  and  attendance  not  included.  If  the  owner  or  purchaser 
does  not  provide  food,  litter,  and  attendance,  these  are  given  ex  officio 
by  the  establishment  at  the  following  rates :  Nine  pounds  of  hay  (half 
a  day's  ration),  10  cents ;  litter,  2  cents  ;  attendance  and  water,  4  cents. 
If  the  animals  remain  more  than  twenty-four  hours  in  the  pens  the 
charges  for  each  succeeding  day  arc  the  following :  Stabling,  oxen  or 
cows,  4  cents  per  head ;  food  (eighteen  pounds  of  hay,  litter,  and  at- 
tendance), 27  cents.  When  sold^  it  costs  77  cents  per  head  for  slaughter- 
house dues.  This  latter  charge  is  at  the  expense  of  the  butcher  or 
purchaser. 

If,  instead  of  livestock,  the  importations  consisted  of  fresh  meat  pre- 
served in  ice  the  expenses  would  be  as  follows : 

Per  100 
pounds. 

Customs  dues SO  29 

Town  dues ,  96£ 

Total 1  25£ 

CATTLE  CENSUS  OF  THE  BORDEAUX  CONSULAR  DISTRICT. 

The  total  number  of  cattle  in  this  consular  district  amounts  to  G5G,000 
head,  viz: 

Oxen  and  bulls  .. 157,500 

Cows , 330,900 

Calves 167,000 

With  the  following  proportion  of  tlie  different  breeds : 

Garonnais 190,000 

Bazadais 32,000 

Bordelais 6,000 

Limousin 149,100 

Pyrcneanof  various  breeds 238,900 

Landais 40,000 

Total 656,000 

GEO.  W.  EOOSEVELT, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Bordeaux, ,  1883. 


282  CATTLE   AND   DAJBY   FARMING. 

NORMANDY  CATTLE. 

REPORT  1SY  CONSUL  GLOVER,  OF  HAVRE, 
WORKING-  CATTLE  }N  FRANCE. 

In  some  portions  of  France  oxen  are  still  extensively  employed  in 
various  kinds  of  work,  and  particularly  on  the  farm.  Many  persons 
contend  that  for  such  uses,  and  in  certain  localities,  they  can  perform  a 
given  amount  of  work  at  less  expense  than  horses.  To  me  this  seems 
improbable.  Still  there  may  be  some  kinds  of  rough  ground  where  oxen 
can  be  very  advantageously  employed.  They  walk  more  slowly  than 
horses,  and  are  more  even  in  their  gait,  so  that  in  u  new  ground,"  or  in 
stony  lands,  they  may  be  very  desirable.  But  it  is  not  necessary  to  pur- 
sue this  branch  of  the  subject  further,  inasmuch  as  cattle,  in  the  United 
States,  are  esteemed  chiefly  on  account  of  their  qualities  for  the  dairy 
or  the  butcher.  The  cow  that  produces  the  largest  amount  of  milk  and 
butter — other  things  being  equal — is  the  best  cow,  and  the  bullock  that 
furnishes  tko  most  beef  of  good  quality,  in  the  shortest  time,  is  the 
best  ex. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  attempt  a  fall  description  of  all  the  various 
breeds  of  cattle  in  France,  but  to  give  as  complete  information  as  I  can 
in  regard  to  the  races  in  the  northern  part  of  the  country,  and  particu- 
larly those  in  Normandy. 

NORMANDY,  ITS  SITUATION,  SOIL,  CLIMATE,  ETC. 

This  province  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  English  Channel,  and 
lies  on  both  sides  of  the  river  Seine.  It  is  composed  of  five  depart- 
ments, viz :  Seine  InfMeure,  chief  cities  Eouen  and  Havre ;  Eure,  chief 
city  Evreux;  Calvados,  chief  city  Caen;  Manche,  chief  city  St.  Lo; 
( Jrne,  chief  city  Alengon.  Although  Normandy  is  situated  between  the 
49°  and  50°  north  latitude,  the  climate  is  temperate,  The  mercury 
rarely  rises  above  75°  in  summer,  and  ice  is  not  often  formed  to  exceed 
half  an  inch  in  thickness  in  winter.  Snow  scarcely  ever  falls  to.  any 
considerable  depth,  and  generally  disappears  in  a  few  hours  at  most. 
Such  a  climate  is  well  adapted  to\he  raising  of  cattle.  In  parts  of  the 
province  some  kinds  of  grasses  remain  green  the  year  through.  The 
surface  of  the  country  is  rather  uneven,  being  intersected  by  many 
streams,  which  flow  into  the  channel.  Still  much  of  the  "up-land"  is 
of  good  quality,  while  the  bottom  land  is  wonderfully  productive. 

Taken  as  a  whole,  Normandy  is  a  very  fertile  country,  but  all  portions 
of  the  province  are  not  equally  favorable  for  cattle  raising.  The  depart- 
ments of  Calvados  and  the  Manche,  which  lie  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Seine,  are  very  remarkable  for  their  fine  cattle,  and  especially  for  but- 
ter-rfroduciug  cows.  In  these  departments  are  to  be  found  the  purest 
Norman  types. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  NORMAN  BREED. 

Of  the  Norman  race  there  are  two  varieties  which  are  particularly 
distinguished,  viz,  the  Cotentin  and  the  Augeronne,  the  former  being 
the  more  highly  esteemed.  The  following  are  some  of  the  peculiar 
characteristics  of  this  race :  Size  large  and  often  not  very  handsome, 


PLATE      122 


Juh  us  Bi  oji  Jf.  (.  'o 


NO  R  MAN      COW 


PLATE     123 


-..,  -  — 


.  *  * 


Julius  Bien  &  Co  JJith , 


HOLLAND    COW 


MJANCE.  283 

large  bones,  with  head  rather  heavy  and  long,  the  mouth  large,  horns 
crumpled  and  white  as  ivory.  They  are  of  many  colors,  but  most  of 
them  are  what  we  would  call  "brindle  cows."  I  inclose  a  cut,  which 
will  aid  in  forming  a  just  estimate  of  their  form  and  general  appear- 
ance. In  my  judgment,  there  are  few  better  cows  for  dairy  purposes 
to  be  found  in  any  country  than  this  Cotentin  variety. 

THE  NORMAN  CATTLE  PREFERABLE  TO  THE  JERSEYS  OR  ALDERNEYS. 

The  very  best  cows  of  this  breed  are  to  be  found  between  Caen  and 
Lisieux,  where  they  are  sometimes  called  livaches  de  pays?  that  is  to 
say,  cows  of  the  country.  I  am  of  opinion  that  some  of  these  Norman 
cows  could  be  imported  into  the  United  States  and  advantageously 
crossed  with  certain  American  breeds.  They  are  most  excellent  milk- 
ers, of  good  disposition,  and  their  milk  is  both  abundant  and  rich.  All 
things  considered,  they  are  certainly  to  be  preferred  to  the  English 
Jerseys  or  Alderneys. 

NORMANDY  BUTTER. 

Probably  no  other  country  in  the  world,  of  like  size,  produces  more 
good  butter  than  the  department  of  Calvados.  Small  villages  in  this 
region  export  to  Paris  large  quantities  of  butter  annually.  The  town 
of  Isigny  alone  sends  nearly  6,000,000  pounds  every  year.  Gournay 
also  sends  3,000,000  pounds.' 

FRESH   VS.  SALTED  BUTTER. 

We  always  have  the  Calvados  butter  on  our  own  table,  and  find  it 
excellent. .  The  French  do  not  use  salt  in  butter,  which  seems  rather 
strange  to  an  American,  but  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  our  people  use 
too  much  salt  in  butter,  as  well  as  in  many  other  articles  of  food. 

MILKING  QUALITIES  OF  THE  NORMAN  COW. 

An  ordinary  Korinan  cow  will  give  about  20  quarts  of  milk  per  day, 
while  in  some  cases  extra  fine  ones  have  been  known  to  give  36  quarts 
in  the  same  length  of  time. 

I  think  it  will  be  safe  to  say  that  an  average  Cotentin  cow  will  pro- 
duce 40  pounds  of  butter  per  month.  This  butter  is  probably  worth  in 
Paris  50  cents  per  pound  the  year  through. 

The  accompanying  cuts  will  give  a  better  idea  of  the  shape  and  gen- 
eral characteristics  of  this  breed  than  any  written  description  I  could 
possibly  give. 

This  race  is  sometimes  crossed  with  the  Durham,  which  certainly  im- 
proves the  appearance  of  the  stock ;  but  many  of  the  French  people 
believe,  that  for  dairy  purposes,  the  Cotentin  cows  cannot  be  improved 
by  the  admixture  of  any  other  blood. 

However,  there  are  those  who  contend  that  such  crossing  does  not 
decrease  the  quantity  or  the  quality  of  the  milk.  Some  of  these  young 
Durham-Norman  cows  with  the  first  calf  have  been  known  to  give  more 
than  20  quarts  of  good  milk  per  day. 

FEEDING  AND  HOUSING  CATTLE  IN  NORMANDY. 

In  summer  tkese  milch  cows  feed  on  various  kinds  of  grasses,  includ- 
ing red  clover.  They  do  not  run  at  large,  as  is  the  custom  in  the  United 
States,  but  they  are  staked  out  in  rows,  across  the  fields,  and  can  only 
graze  to  the  end  of  their  tether.  After  they  have  eaten  everything 
within  reach  they  are  moved  to  a  new  position.  This  process  requires 


284  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

a  little  more  care  than  we  are  accustomed  to,  but  it  is  very  important  to 
economize  in  every  way  in  a  country  where  land  is  so  valuable.  In 
winter  they  are  fed  on  hay,  beets,  turnips,  carrots,  cabbage,  &c.  A 
good  cow  is  worth  about  $75. 

NORMAN  BEEF  CATTLE. 

The  Norman  race  is  esteemed  for  the  bouclierie,  but  I  am  sure  that  it 
is  greatly  improved  by  crossing  with  the  Durham  stock. 

The  half  breeds  mature  more  rapidly,  are  larger,  and  of  better  form 
than  the  pure  ^Norman.  Bullocks  for  the  market  are  chiefly  fattened 
in  the  summer  on  the  excellent  pastures  which  abound  in  this  province, 
and  especially  in  Calvados  and  the  Manche.  This  part  of  France  pro- 
duces abundance  of  beef  for  home  consumption,  and  bullocks  have  been 
sometimes  exported,  principally  to  England. 

The  upland  has  a  clayey,  marly  soil,  and  is  well  adapted  to  the  vari- 
ous grasses.  In  the  hilly  regions  we  find  abundance  of  flint,  but  the 
soil  is  quite  productive. 

VALUE  OF  BEEF  AND  BEEF  CATTLE  IN  NORMANDY. 

A  good  bullock  on  foot  is  worth  about  $130.  Fine  specimens  will 
sometimes  sell  for  $200  or  more ;  but  such  animals  are  not  often  sold  in 
this  market.  Beef  cattle  are  worth  about  10  cents  per  pound,  on  foot. 
This  with  the  addition  of  octroi  and  other  taxes,  of  course  makes  our 
sirloin  steaks  rather  high  priced.  For  choice  cuts  from  extra  fine  bul- 
lock's we  sometimes  pay  from  30  to  40  cents  per  pound.  Good  beef  can 
bo  had,  however,  at  from  24  to  30  cents  per  pound. 

FRENCH  VS.  AMERICAN  BUTCHERS  AND  BUTCHER  SHOPS. 

The  French  butchers  handle  their  meats  with  the  greatest  possible 
care.  I-  think  our  American  dealers  might  learn  something  from  the 
French  in  this  regard.  As  a  rule  they  are  more  careful  in  their  selec- 
tions of  animals  for  the  Tjouclierie,  and  the  result  is  that  the  beef  is  more 
uniformly  good.  Their'shops  are  perfect  models  of  neatness,  and  always 
as  clean  as  they  can  possibly  bo  made ;  cleanliness  is  next  to  godliness, 
especially  in  the  dairy  and  the  butcher  shop.  The  French  butchers 
allow  their  meats  to  hang  much  longer  before  cutting  than  our  Ameri 
can  butchers.  I  note  this  custom  from  the  fact  that  I  think  it  greatly  im- 
proves the  texture  of  the  meat.  Our  American  housekeepers  ought  to 
bo  a  little  more  sparing  in  the  use  of  salt.  A  new  steak,  well  salted 
before  broiling,  is  almost  sure  to  be  tough. 

FRENCH  VEAL. 

It  is  not  the  custom  in  France  to  slaughter  very  young  calves.  They 
are  rarely  killed  before  they  are  three  or  four  months  old,  and  many  qt 
these  weigh  from  140  to  200  pounds  net.  Veau  is  always  to  bo  found 
in  the  markets,  and  is  greatly  esteemed  by  the  French  people. 

IMPORTATION  OF  AMERICAN  CATTLE  INTO  HAVRE. 

Very  few,  if  any,  American  cattle  have  been  imported  into  this  part 
of  France.  The  chief  difficulty  in  regard  to  the  business  is  cost  of 


FRANCE.  285 

transportation.  Can  this  obstacle  be  removed?  is  the  question.  It 
would  seem  that  powerful  and  swift  steamers  specially  arranged  for  the 
trade  ought  to  bo  able  to  carry  beef  cattle  at  such  a  rate  as  would  leave 
a  profit  for  the  dealer.  A  Calvados  bullock,  weighing  1,500  pounds,  is 
worth  in  this  market  about  $145.  A  like  animal  in  Galveston,  Tex., 
would  probably  be  worth  about  $60.  This  would  leave  a  margin  of 
$85  for  transportation,  shrinkage,  profits,  &c. 

This  does  not  appear  sufficient  to  induce  capitalists  to  engage  in  the 
trade.  Still  I  am  of  opinion  that  the  time  is  coming  when  Europe  must 
receive  a  large  part  of  her  beef  cattle  direct  from  the  United  States. 

Wo  have  an  unlimited  quantity  of  the  very  best  beef  in  the  world, 
and  a  large  portion  of  it  ought  to  find  its  way  into  the  mouths  of  the 
hungry  millions  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 

I  think,  however,  as  indicated  above,  that  freights  must  be  considera- 
bly reduced  before  our  live  bullocks  can  be  shipped  at  a  profit  from 
the  Great  West  to  any  of  the  French  ports.  But  the  time  will  come. 

EXPORTATION  OP  NORMAN  CATTLE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

So  far  as  exportations  from  this  country  to  the  United  States  are  con- 
cerned, it  is  not  probable  that  they  will  ever  be  very  large.  A  few 
choice  Norman  cows,  strictly  for  breeding  purposes,  will  bo  all  that  can 
be  expected  in  this  direction. 

Accompanying  this  report  will  bo  found  cuts  of  the  various  French 
breeds,  especially  those  of  the  Northern  part  of  France.  These  will  be 
useful  in  comparing  the  different  races,  showing  their  form,  &c. 

JOHN  B.  GLOVER, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Havre ,  November,  1883. 


CATTLE  PRODUCTS  IS  THE  DISTRICT  OF  THE  MARINE. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  FRISBIE,  OF  EHEIMS. 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  Department's  circular 
dated  July  18,  1883,  requesting  information  relative  to  cattle  breeding, 
for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  stock  breeders  of  the  United  States. 

Immediately  on  receipt  of  said  circular  I  began  an  investigation  of 
the  subject  presented,  with  the  hope  that  I  should  be  able  to  prepare  a 
report  of  some  interest  and  benefit  to  the  Department  and  to  the  stock 
breeders  of  the  country;  but  in  this  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  have  not 
been  successful,  from  the  fact  that  the  material  out  of  which  to  make 
such  a  report  does  not  exist  in  this  district. 

This  condition  arises  from,  the  fact,  first,  that  the  soil  is  light  and 
chalky,  and  not  suitable  for  growing  grasses  for  pasturage,  thus  render- 
ing stock-raising  unprofitable ;  and,  second,  in  the  champagne  district, 
of  which  Itheims  is  the  center,  the  great  industries  are  the  cultivation 
of  the  vine  and  the  manufacture  of  its  product,  and  the  manufacture  of 
woolen  goods,  which  leave  little  room  for  other  enterprises  of  a  less 
profitable  nature. 

So  far  as  I  am  informed,  there  does  not  exist  a  single  cattle  market  in 
this  district.  Beef  is  brought  to  this  market  already  killed  and  dressed, 


286  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

from  Paris  and  other  places  at  a  distance.  Butter  for  table  use  is 
brought  from  Normandy  and  other  places,  while  the  little  which  is  made 
in  this  vicinity  is  fit  only  for  cooking  purposes. 

Milk  is  largely  brought  to  this  market  by  rail  from  out-lying  districts, 
that  which  is  produced  in  the  vicinity  of  Eheims  being  of  an  inferior 
quality. 

JOHN  L.  EEISBIB, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Eheims,  France,  October  18, 1883. 


CATTLE  IN  THE  DISTRICT  OF  MCE, 

REPORT  Ur  VICE-CONSUL  YlAL. 

The  ordinary  breed,  Taurus,  is  the  single  one  to  be  found  in  the  dis- 
trict of  Nice.  Neither  beeves  nor  bulls  are  bred  or  fed  in  this  part  of 
France  ;  cows  alone  receive  the  best  care  in  the  dairy  for  milk  purposes, 
inasmuch  as  the  milk  is  the  chief  food  of  a  great  many  foreigners  com- 
ing here  during  the  winter.  The  beeves  arriving  in  this  town  from 
Piedmont  (Italy)  are  all  reserved  for  the  butcher.  The  best  cow,  the 
preferred,  is  called  "  Bergamase."  This  name  refers  to  the  town  from 
which  it  is  drawn,  viz,  Bergamus  (Italy).  It  is  a  very  stark  cow,  thick- 
set, dark  chestnut,  fine-haired,  4  feet  high,  always  hollow-backed,  with 
two  large  veins  near  the  paps,  one  on  each  flank  5  giving  an  average  daily 
quantity  of  3  or  4  gallons  of  excellent  milk.  When  wanting  cows,  the  milk- 
men of  Nice  get  the  Bergamases  from  Lombardy  (Mouza,  Milan,  Berga- 
mus), and  they  choose  them  in  the  third  year  of  their  age,  having  just  had 
their  first  calf  or  being  still  in  calf.  As  Nice  is  surrounded  by  hills  and 
as  there  are  no  large  plains  or  meadows  the  plow  is  quite  useless,  arid 
consequently  no  labor  is  required  from  oxen  or  cows.  The  best  milk- 
men estimate  that  there  are  from  2,000  to  2,500  cows  in  the  district  of 
Nice.  When  bought  in  Lombardy  a  cow  costs  $80  to  $90,  but  its  trans- 
portation to  Nice  raises  this  cost  to  $85  or  $95.  Cows  are  conveyed 
hither  by  railway  express,  in  wagons  containing  seven  or  eight.  Six 
gallons  of  water  and  18  pounds  hay  are  their  daily  food  in  a  journey  oi' 
eighteen  hours.  The  same  ratio  of  food  would  be  sufficient  for  the  pas- 
sage across  the  Atlantic,  provided  they  be  kept  in  appropriate  stalls,  0 
feet  wide,,  6  feet  high,  and  9  feet  long.  The  daily  food  of  a  dairy  cow 
is  estimated  at  44  cents. 

No  exportation  takes  place  from  Nice ;  the  cattle  crossing  over  this 
country  is  directed  to  a  few  small  towns  of  the  department  of  the  Alpes 
Maritimes.  They  are  generally  driven  on  foot,  unless  long  distances 
require  railway  express.  From  time  to  time  Nice  receives  beeves  for 
butchery  either  from  Sardinia  or  from  Algeria  (Africa),  but  in  small  quan- 
tity and  only  when  the  importations  from  Italy  become  very  scarce. 
Such  animals  give,  however,  but  a  middling  quality  of  meat  which  can 
hardly  be  sold  on  the  market,  where  the  Piedmont  cattle  meat  is  always 
preferred. 

A.  VIAL, 

Vice- Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE,  Nice,  October  16, 1883. 


SWITZERLAND.  28? 


SWITZERLAND. 


SWISS  CATTLE. 

EEPOET  BY  CONSUL  MASON,  OF  EASLE. 
THE  TWO  PRINCIPAL  RACES  AND  THEIR   SUBSIDIARY  BREEDS. 

Switzerland,  whose  seventeen  different  kinds  of  cheese  are  nearly  all 
exported,  in  greater  or  less  quantities,  to  most  civilized  countries,  pos- 
sesses two  distinct  and  noble  breeds  of  cattle,  each  of  which  maybe  fairly 
said  to  be,  in  respect  to  certain  essential  qualities,  unsurpassed,  if  indeed 
they  are  equaled,  by  any  other  bovine  races  in  Europe.  They  are,  re- 
spectively : 

(1)  The  Spotted  race  (Fleckvieh),  which  has  its  origin  hi  the  valleys  of 
the  Simrne,  the  Saane,  and  the  Kander  in  Canton  Berne,  and  is  known 
by  the  nameof  "Berner  spotted,"  or  u  Sirnmenthalor  Saanenthal  cattle." 
The  principal  off-shoot  or  subsidiary  breed  of  this  race  is  the  "  Freiburger 
Schwarzvieh,"  from  the  adjacent  canton  of  Friburgh,  which  is  marked 
similarly  to  the  Berners  cattle,  except  that  its,  spots  are  black  instead 
of  yellow  or  red. 

(2)  The  Brown  Scliwyzer  race,  the  origin  of  which  is  traced  to  Canton 
Schwyz,  from  which  its  name  is  also  derived.    This  race  is  bred  in  its 
greatest  purity  in  the  central  cantons  of  Schwyz,  Uri,  and  Zug,  and  is 
distributed  throughout  the  whole  of  Appenzell,  Eastern  and  Central 
Switzerland,  and  as  far  west  as  the  Canton  of  Argau.    A  few  are  also 
kept  in  the  high  valleys  of  the  Jura  and  among  the  adjacent  foot-hills, 
so  that  this  breed  must  be  included  in  any  adequate  account  of  the  cat- 
tle of  this  consular  district. 

As  to  the  approximate  date  at  which  these  two  principal  races  of  cat- 
tle were  first  introduced  into  Switzerland,  opinions  differ.  By  many 
their  presence  here  is  believed  to  be  coexistent  with  that  of  the  present 
race  of  people,  and  there  have  been  found  amoog  the  remains  of  the 
prehistoric  lake-dwellers  skulls  of  oxen  bearing  horns  and  other  marks 
peculiar  to  the  brown  Schwyzer  cattle  of  to-day.  It  is  generally  believed 
that  the  Spotted  breed  of  cattle,  on  the  other  hand,  was  derived  orig- 
inally from  the  Netherlands,  and  a  resemblance  is  found  between  the 
Bernese  animals  and  certain  breed  of  Dutch  cattle.  But,  whatever  their 
origin,  the  essential  fact  is  that  the  Spotted  and  Brown  cattle  races  of 
Switzerland  have  been  refined  and  improved  by  many  centuries  of  careful 
treatment  and  intelligent  breeding,  and  have  become  during  the  mod- 
ern period  of  international  expositions  two  of  the  most  valued  and  im- 
portant breeds  in  Europe. 

SWISS  IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  OF  CATTLE. 

By  reason  of  the  limited  area  of  this  thickly  peopled  country,  and  the 
high  values  of  its  meadow  and  pasture  lands,  the  cattle  product  of  Switz- 
erland is  inadequate  to  its  needs,  and  the  animals  which  are  annually 
imported  for  meat  exceed  in  number,  though  not  in  value,  the  Swiss 
cattle  which  are  exported  in  constantly  increasing  quantities  for  dairy 
and  breeding  purposes.  There' were  in  Switzerland,  at  the  last  census, 
1,030,000  horned  cattle,  of  which  about  one-half  were  milch  cows. 


288  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

The  statistics  of  1883  are  not  yet  at  hand,  but  the  exports  and  im- 
ports of  horned  stock  for  1881  and  1882  were,  respectively,  as  follows : 

IMPORTS. 

From  France 44,515 

From  Germany - 42,708 

From  Austria 20,  135 

From  Italy -. - 3,082 

Total  neat  cattle 110,500 

Calves,  all  countries 1,159 

Total  for  1881 111,059 

Total  for  1882 - 116,000 

EXPORTS. 

To  Franco 13,181 

To  Germany 20,188 

To  Austria 4,004 

To  Italy 19,805 

Total Gf>,3:W 

Calves 9,861 


There  were  exported  during  1881  and  1882  a  few  choice  Brown  cattlo 
to  the  United  States  for  breeding  purposes,  but  as  they  were  shipped 
via  Antwerp,  and  therefore  crossed  the  Swiss  frontier  into  Germany, 
they  are  probably  included  in  the  registered  exports  from  that  country. 

The  beef  cattle  which  are  now  imported  into  Switzerland  from  Ger- 
many, Austria,  and  Italy  are  mostly  large,  raw-boned,  and  rather  coarse- 
looking  animals,  rough-haired,  long-homed,  and  wanting  in  most  of  the 
essential  points  of  highly  bred  stock. 

PRICES  AND  EXPORTS   OF  CHOICE    SWISS  CATTLE. 

The  export  of  fine  dairy  and  breeding  cattle  from  Switzerland  to  ad- 
jacent countries,  as  well  as  to  England  and  the  United  States,  is  in- 
creasing so  rapidly  that  prices  have  advanced  largely  during  the  past 
two  years.  At  a  cattle  fair  in  Sargans  early  in  October  of  this  year,  I 
was  told  that  the  sales  showed  an  average  advance  of  50  francs  per 
head  for  all  classes,  as  compared  with  values  a  year  ago. 

As  early  as  August  buyers  from  Italy  and  other  countries  appear  in 
force  in  the  mountain  districts,  and  many  of  the  choicest  animals  are 
picked  up  by  them  before  the  cantonal  fairs  of  September  and  October 
begin,  and  it  is  claimed  by  good  authorities  that  this  increasing  popu- 
larity of  Swiss  cattle  in  foreign  countries  and  the  growing  practice  of 
selling  the  milk  from  many  dairy  forms  directly  to  large  milk-condens- 
ing establishments  is  having  a  pernicious  effect  upon,  the  cattle  and  the 
people  of  the  rural  cantons.  On  the  one  hand,  the  sale  and  export  of 
so  many  of  the  choicest  animals  tends  naturally  to  check  the  improve- 
ment of  the  stock;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  daily  sale  of  milk  for  a 
liberal  cash  price  tempts  the  thrifty  Switzer  to  work  for  immediate  re- 
sults rather,  than  use  part  of  his  daily  milk  product  in  raising  calves. 

So  that  while  the  outflow  of  fine  stock  to  other  countries  is  increas- 
ing, the  supply  of  such  animals  has  not  increased  in  due  proportion. 


290  CATTLE  &ND    DAIRY   FARMING. 

that  these  cows  average  21  pounds  of  milk  daily,  or  7,665  pounds  each 
during  the  year.  This  is  a  maximum  record  for  au  entire  herd,  and  re- 
quires liberal  winter  feeding  on  grain,  roots,  <&c.,  which  is  rarely  prac- 
ticed by  the  rural  farmer.  It  will  also  be  noted  that  these  cows  are 
stabled  throughout  the  year,  and,  except  during  a  few  days  in  October, 
after  the  last  grass  is  cut,  they  never  graze. 

The  records  of  several  well-conducted  dairies  in  the  wide  basin  be- 
tween the  Jura  and  Bernese  Alps,  where  three  hundred  milking  days 
are  counted  to  each  year,  show  an  average  yield  of  23  pounds  14  ounces 
of  milk  per  day  from  each  cow,  or  7,162  pounds  for  the  year.  These 
statistics  have  been  careitiJly  collected,  confirmed,  and  published  by 
Mr.  B.  Baumgartner,  member  of  the  cantonal  council  of  Soleure,  and 
president  of  the  agricultural  association,  whose  long  and  intelligent 
labors  for  the  improvement  of  Swiss  stock  and  the  general  advance- 
ment of  agricultural  interests  make  him  a  high  and  recognized  author- 
ity on  such  subjects. 

In  richness  of  milk,  the  Spotted  race  also  ranks  well.  In  the  Alps, 
where  the  grass  is  savory  and  richest,  25  pounds  of  their  milk  yield  a 
pound  of  butter ;  in  the  valleys,  the  quantity  required  for  the  same 
purpose  varies  from  28  to  30  pounds.  Ten  pounds  of  milk  yield  a  pound  of 
cured  cheese,  and  besides  this,  in  mountain  dairies  the  herdsmen  usually 
skim  enough  cream  to  make  1  pound  of  butter  from  each  100  pounds  of 
milk  without  sensibly  affecting  the  quality  of  the  cheese.  This  so- 
called  "Vorbruch  butter  "  has,  however,  a  strong  animal  flavor,  and 
sells  usually  for  2  or  3  cents  per  pound  less  than  ordinary  butter  from 
the  same  district.  Something,  of  course,  depends  upon  the  quantity 
and  the  quality  of  grass  upon  which  the  animals  are  fed,  but  the  above 
figures  may  be  accepted  as  standard  for  well-bred  Bernese  cows  kept 
on  farms  where  meadows  are  manured,  and  irrigated  in  dry  weather. 

THE  BERNESE   (SIMMENTHAL)   AS  BEEF  CATTLE. 

As  beef  cattle  it  will  be  accurately  inferred  from  the  foregoing  that 
the  Bernese  race  holds  the  first  place  among  the  breeds  of  this  country. 
They  grow  rapidly  and  are  mature  in  their  fourth  year.  They  are  of 
enormous  size,  compactly  and  cleanly  built,  and  their  flesh  is  fine- 
grained, tender,  and  savory.  As  such  it  is  readily  distinguishable,  either 
in  the  butcher's  stall  or  at  table,  from  the  coarse-grained,  stringy  beef 
which  is  produced  by  most  of  the  imported  "  scrub  n  -cattle  with  which 
Switzerland  supplies  the  deficit  in  her  meat  product.  Finer  beef  than 
is  produced  here  from  the  stall-fed  Simmenthal  oxen  I  have  never  seen, 
either  in  England  or  the  United  States,  and  it  may  well  be  doubted 
whether  better  exists  anywhere. 

PRICES  OF  FINELY  BRED  BERNESE  CATTLE. 

The  present  market  values  of  finely  bred  Bernese  cattle,  such  as  would 
naturally  be  selected  for  export,  are  indicated  by  averages  of  sales  at 
several  fairs  during  the  present  autumn,  as  follows :  Calves,  six  months 
old,  $40  ;  yearlings,  $80  to  $100;  cow  (four  to  five  years  old),  $130  to 
$145;  bull  (two  to  four  years  old),  $130  to  $150. 

A  competent  buyer,  familiar  with  Swiss  dialects  and  methods  of 
"  dickering,"  could  go  among  the  farmers  and  buy  equally  good  cattle 
at  perhaps  10  per  cent,  less  than  the  above  prices,  which  are  the  values 
current  among  dealers. 


.SWITZERLAND.  291 

BERNESE  CATTLE   SUITABLE  FOR  EXPORT    TO   THE  UNITED  STATES. 

For  export  to  the  United  States,  the  six-months-old  calves  are  recom 
mended  by  experts  here  as  being  cheaper  at  first  cost,  easier  and  less 
costly  to  transport,  and  more  likely  to  acclimatize  readily  than  older 
animals. 

BLACK-SPOTTED  FREIBURG  CATTLE. 

There  are  several  off-shoot  breeds  derived  from  the  pure  Bernese, 
known  as  the  Freiburg,  the  Frutiger,  the  Illiez,  and  Ormond  breads,  but 
they  are  all  more  or  less  inferior  to  the  pure  original  race.  As  a  prin- 
ciple, cross-breeding  has  failed  in  Switzerland,  and  the  best  results 
have  always  been  obtained  by  in-breeding  from  the  pure  original  stock. 

Of  these  minor  spotted  breeds  the  only  one  which  deserves  notice 
here  is  the  Freiburg,  which  originated  in  the  canton  of  that  name,  and 
is  still  bred  there  in  great  purity,  although  even  there  it  is  gradually 
giving  way  in  the  best  herds  to  the  light-colored  Saanen  and  Sim  men- 
thai  variety. 

The  distinctive  mark  of  the  Freiburg  cattle  is  found  in  the  fact  that 
their  spots  are  black.  Many  examples  are  seen  in  which  the  entire  ani- 
mal is  black,  except  perhaps  the  head  and  a  stripe  under  the  belly.  It 
is  fully  as  heavy  as  its  Bernese  rival,  but  has  larger,  heavier  bones, 
coarser  flesh,  and  is  in  other  respects  inferior  to  it  in  the  technical 
points  which  characterize  a  perfect  stock. 

As  working  animals  and  as  milkers  the  Freiburgers  rank  next  to  the 
Bernese,  but  for  reasons  stated  they  are  less  valuable  for  either  the 
home  market  or  export. 

SIZE  OF  BERNESE  AND  FREIBURG  CATTLE  AT  MATURITY. 

Thoroughbred  animals  of  both  Bernese  and  Freiburg  breeds  attain 
at  maturity  the  following  dimensions  :  Length,  83  to  87  inches ;  height 
of  shoulder,  55  to  GO  inches  ;  girth  behind  shoulders,  87  to  SO  inches  $ 
weight,  1,600  to  2,500  pounds. 

THE  BERNESE— DURHAM  CROSS-BREED. 

For  meat-producing  purposes,  a  cross  between  the  Swiss-spotted  cat- 
tle and  the  English-Durham  breed  has  been  found  excellent,  but  it  is 
inferior  for  dairy  and  working  purposes  to  the  pure  bred  Siminenthaler 
and  is  comparatively  little  known. 

BROWN  SCHWY1ZER  CATTLE. 

As  already  indicated,  the  one  other  breed  of  Swiss  cattle  which  chal- 
lenges the  supremacy  of  the  Fleck  race  is  the  Brown  Schwy  tzer,  which 
has  been  bred  for  many  centuries  in  the  cantons  of  Schwytz,  Uri,  and 
Zug,  and  lias  spread  thence  throughout  the  whole  mountain  region  of 
Switzerland.  Its  renown  as  a  milker,  its  gentle  disposition,  and  its 
ready  adaptation  to  varying  conditions  of  food  and  climate,  have  made 
the  Schwytzer  the  better  known,  as  it  is  no  doubt  the  more  largely  ex- 
ported of  the  two  pure  breeds  of  Swiss  cattle. 

As  milkers. — The  milk-producing  records  of  choice  herds  of  these 
cows  ha\%  been  carefully  kept  for  centuries  by  the  monks  at  Einsiedeln, 
and  later  at  the  milk-condensing  establishment  in  Cham,  both  of  which 


292  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

will  bo  so  fully  reported  by  the  consul  at  Ziirich  that  they  may  be  omit- 
ted here. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  BROWN  SCHWYTZER  CATTLE. 

The  Schvvytzer  cattle  vary  greatly  in  size.  Some  are  nearly  as  large 
as  the  average  animals  of  the  spotted  race,  but  there  are  other  varie- 
ties which  are  kept  in  the  high  alpine  districts,  and  which  do  not  aver- 
age more  than  1,000  pounds  in  weight. 

v_Cho  standard  Schwytzer  cow  has,  however,  a  weight  of  1,200  to  1,300 
pounds,  and  is  a  remarkably  perfect  animal.  The  color  most  highly 
esteemed,  as  indicative  of  pure  blood,  is  a  dun  or  mouse-color,  fading 
to  gray  upon  the  back,  and  a  strip  of  light  gray  or  nearly  white  along 
the  belly.  The  udder  should  be  white,  with  large  lacteal  veins,  the 
horns  white  two-thirds  of  their  length,  with  tips  of  black.  The  ears 
are  large  and  round,  lined  inside  with  long,  fine  fawn-colored  hair;  the 
tongue  and  nose  are  black,  the  latter  ringed  with  a  circlet  of  light- 
colored  hair,  approaching  nearly  to  whiteness  on  the  lower  jaw.  The 
body  is  plump  and  compact,  the  back  straight,  the  legs  round,  firmly 
set,  and  well  muscled,  with  small  black  hoofs.  The  mountain-bred 
Schwytzer  cattle  climb  like  goats,  and  thrive  throughout  the  year  upon 
grass  and  hay  alone. 

These  cattle  have  been  exported  to  the  United  States  and  to  all  Euro- 
pean countries,  including  even  Russia;  and  they  have  proved  entirely 
successful  everywhere  except  in  Spain.  They  work  well  under  the 
yoke,  but  are  smaller  and  less  powerful  than  the  spotted  race,  and  for 
the  same  reasons  they  are  likewise  inferior  to  that  race  for  the  butcher. 
They  are,  in  fact,  bred  principally  for  their  milking  qualities,  and  in 
that  respect  they  are  unsurpassed  in  the  quantity  and  quality  of  milk 
which  they  produce  from  a  given  quantity  of  food. 

MILKING  QUALITIES  OF  THE  SCHWYTZER   CATTLE, 

Trustworthy  statistics  show  that  a  well-kept  Schwytzer  cow,  fed  on 
cut  grass  or  hay,  with  plentiful  pure  fresh  water,  will  yield  an  average 
of  10  quarts  of  milk  daily  during  the  entire  year.  At  Cham,  the  G,000 
cows,  whose  milk  is  condensed  by  the  Anglo-Swiss  Company,  yield 
5,315  pounds,  or  9T8y-  quarts  each  per  day  during  the  milking  season, 
and  tbtfse  are  only  ordinary  animals  of  the  brown  Schwytzer  race, 
Choice  herds,  carefully  kept,  average  at  the  best  milking  age,  during 
April,  May,  and  June,  12  quarts  daily  and  even  higher.  The  milk  is  of 
excellent  quality,  from  25  to  30  quarts  of  it  yielding  a  pound  of  butter, 
and  from  9  to  10  quarts  a  pound  of  cheese. 

PRICES  OF  BROWN  SCHWYTZER  CATTLE. 

Comparisons  of  sales  at  several  fairs  in  Eastern  Switzerland  during 
the  present  autumn  show  the  following  prices  for  well-bred  brown  cat- 
tle of  various  ages: 

Calves,  six  months  old $40 

Yearlings $80  to  100 

Two-year  olds 100        120 

Cows,  four  to  six  years  old 120        140 

Bulls,  three  years  old 120        150 

Old  cows GO        100 

The  prices  charged  by  peasants  at  their  farms  would  be  10^  per  cent, 
less  than  these  figures. 


SWITZERLAND. 


293 


BERNESE  AND  BROWN  SCHWYTZER  BREEDS. 

The  collection  of  official  photographs  which  accompanies  this  report 
exhibits  first-prize  cattle  of  the  Bernese,  Freiburg,  and  brown  Schwyt- 
zer  breeds  at  the  national  exhibition  held  at  Luzern  in  1881.  These 
pictures  represent  in  sufficient  variety  the  most  perfect  specimens  of 
the  two  races,  and  will  fully  justify  and  confirm  the  high  estimate  iu 
which  the  pure-bred  Swiss  cattle  are  held  by  stock-breeders  of  all  coun- 
tries. As  to  which  race  is  best  for  transplanting  to  the  United  States, 
experience  only  can  determine,  for  even  in  Switzerland  the  palm  of 
superiority  between  the  two  is  still  in  dispute. 

The  dairymen  at  Appenzell,  the  clever  monks  at  Einsiedeln,  and 
Mr.  George  Page,  the  capable  American  manager  of  the  Anglo-Swiss 
Condensed  Milk  Company,  prefer  the  brown  race. 

President  Baumgartner,  whose  experience  and  observation  include 
many  choice  herds  of  both  races  in  various  cantons,  as  well  as  the 
famous  dairymen  of  the  Emmenthal,  and  a  number  of  cantonal  gov- 
ernments which  have  made  elaborate  experiments  upon  farms  attached 
to  public  institutions,  all  these  unquestionable  authorities  prefer  de- 
cidedly the  spotted  race. 

In  respect  to  size,  the  merits  of  two  races  will  be  accurately  shown 
by  the  following  figures,  which  represent  the  average  measurement  of 
the  premium  cattle  at  a  recent  fair  in  Langenthal.  The  figures  given 
are  the  mean  result  derived  by  measurements  of  from  eleven  to  twenty- 
eight  animals  in  each  class : 


Animals. 

Height  of 
shoulder. 

Girth  be- 
hind shoul- 
ders. 

Length. 

Bulls  : 
Bernese  spotted  .            .... 

Inches. 
53?? 

Indies. 
79} 

Inches. 
82 

Drown  Schwytzor 

614 

75-v 

774 

Cows  : 
Bernese  spotted 

f)5 

81 

84 

Brown  Schwvtzer  

52 

77 

80 

Heifers  before  niilldng  ago: 
Bornese  spotted    

5^4 

77J 

81 

Brown  Schwytzer  

49i 

72 

77 

Length  in  these  measurements  means  from,  the  base  of  horns  to  the  root  of  the  tail. 

HOW  SWISS  CATTLE  ARE  HERDED,  HOUSED,  AND  FED. 

It  has  been  stated  in  former  reports  from  this  consulate  that  dairying 
and  cattle-growing  are  each  year  becoming  more  important  in  Switzer- 
land and  supply  a  constantly  increasing  percentage  of  the  gross  income 
which  is  earned  by  the  agricultural  population.  The  reasons  for  this 
are: 

First.  By  reason  of  uncertain  seasons  the  small  percentage  of  arable 
land  in  this  country  and  its  consequent  high  value,  added  to  the  com- 
petition of  cheap  breadstun's  from  Hungary,  Eussia,  and  the  United 
States  have  made  wheat- raising  much  less  profitable  than  dairying  and 
stock-growing. 

Second.  The  present  improved  methods  which  prevail  in  the  Swiss 
cattle  industry  enable  the  farmer  to  utilize  every  rood  of  accessible  soil 
from  the  rich  valleys  to  the  highest  pastures  of  the  Alps  and  Jura,  and 
the  industrious  care  which  he  devotes  to  the  feeding  and  raising  of  cat- 
tle enable  him  to  realize  the  largest  financial  result  from  the  smallest 
area  of  salable  land. 


294  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

The  Swiss  have  not  only  two  distinct  breeds  of  the  finest  and  most 
economically  valuable  cattle  in  the  world,  but  they  probably  surpass 
every  other  people  in  the  unwearying  care  and  intelligent  economy  with 
which  their  animals  are  housed,  milked,  and  fed. 

Whether  the  farmer  of  the  lowlands  lives  in  a  village  or  upon  his  land 
his  dwelling  and  his  stable  are  usually  under  the  same  roof.  Great, 
roomy,  and  homely,  but  picturesque,  structures  they  are,  those  houses 
and  barns,  covered  by  the  same  steep  and  projecting  roof  of  red  tiles, 
under  the  spreading  eaves  of  which  are  stored  the  wagons  and  other 
farm  machinery  when  out  of  use.  That  end  of  this  building  which 
shelters  the  family  may  be  of  rood,  with  picturesque  balconies  and  ex- 
terior stairways ;  the  upper  part  of  the  other  half  in  which  the  hay  is 
stored  is  not  unfrequently  built  of  squared  pine  logs  or  clapboarded, 
with  large  and  frequent  openings  for  ventilation  of  the  hay,  which  is 
cut  and  thrown  in  fresh  and  fragrant,  often  almost  without  curing,  in 
this  rainy,  cloudy  climate,  but  the  stable,  that  chief  feature  of  the  es- 
tablishment, which  underlies  the  hay-loft,  is  invariably  built  of  stone, 
its  solid  walls  of  masonry  being  often  2  feet  in  thickness  and  plastered 
within  and  without.  The  heavy  oaken  stable  door  fits  into  its  casings 
like  the  cork  of  a  bottle ;  the  ceiling  is  as  nearly  air-tight  as  possible, 
and  one  or  two  small  openings  through  the  thick  wall  admit  only  a 
feeble  glimmer  of  light  to  the  dim  interior.  The  floor  is  of  plank  or 
stone  with  a  sunken  section  through  the  middle  to  catch  the  wet  and 
waste,  and  heavy  mangers  or  troughs  along  the  sides  receive  the 
food  of  the  cattle.  The  stables,  for  the  most  part  often  cleansed  and 
kept  with  all  practicable  neatness,  are  almost  entirely  unventilated. 
In  such  stalls,  in  a  close,  noisome  atmosphere,  the  cows  on  most  low- 
land farms  are  kept  day  and  night  throughout  the  year  except  during 
a  few  days  in  late  September  and  October,  when,  after  the  last  crop  of 
grass  is  mowed,  the  herd  is  turned  out  for  a  fortnight  or  two  of  grazing. 
This  practice,  however,  is  by  no  means  universal  among  the  dairymen 
of  the  valleys,  many  of  whom  never  bring  their  cows  out  of  the  stable 
from  one  year  to  another,  except,  perhaps,  for  a  few  moments,  when  they 
are  led  to  the  adjacent  trough  to  be  watered. 

Whatever  else  he  may  believe  the  Swiss  cattle-grower  never  forgets 
that  the  prime  requisites  of  economical  dairying  and  meat  growing  are 
warmth,  quiet,  good,  plentiful  food,  and  fresh  water  for  the  animals, 
for  warmth  saves  food. 

A  cow  housed  in  a  close,  warm,  dark  stable  wastes  none  of  the  fat  or 
milk-producing  elements  of  her  food  in  needless  exertion.  She  is  pro- 
tected from  flies,  from  the  goring  and  annoyance  of  other  cattle,  from 
the  hot  sun  of  noon  and  the  chills  of  rain  and  dews  as  well  as  from  the 
sudden  flaws  of  bleak  wind  which  even  in  midsummer  blow  at  times 
from  the  snow-clad  slopes  of  the  higher  Alps. 

There  are,  of  course,  throughout  the  whole  mountain  region  of  Switz- 
erland high  valleys  and  steep  pastures  to  which  the  cattle  are  driven  in 
May  or  June  and  graze  until  the  end  of  the  brief  summer.  But  even 
there  the  same  zealous  and  intelligent  care  is  taken  to  protect  the  animals 
from  every  contingency  of  weather.  The  chalets  on  the  lofty  meadows, 
which  look  so  picturesque  from  the  valleys  below,  are,  for  the  most  part, 
cow-houses  built  of  squared  logs  or  planks  carefully  chinked  with  clay 
or  moss,  and  constructed,  like  the  barns  for  winter,' in  the  most  careful 
and  substantial  manner.  I  have  counted  nine  layers  or  thicknesses  of 
shaved  pine  shingles  in  the  roofs  of  these  chalets,  so  carefully  are  they 
constructed  to  exclude  the  damp  and  cold.  There  is  often  a  fireplace 
between  the  stalls  at  the  end  opposite  the  door,  and  there  the  mountain 


SWITZERLAND.  295 

herdsman  lives  and  sleeps  with  his  cows  from  spring  until  autumn.  If 
the  morning  is  fair  and  the  sun  warm  he  turns  them  out  to  graze  upon 
the  short,  sweet  mountain  grass,  and  busies  himself  with  mowing  and 
bringing  in  a  supply  that  will  serve  to  sustain  his  herd  during  night  or 
stormy  weather ;  but  at  the  first  approach  of  cold  wind  or  rain  his  jodelj 
or  his  horn,  is  heard  and  the  cows  hasten  to  their  accustomed  shelter. 
Naturally  purely  blooded  cattle  treated  in  this  way,  curried  and  brushed 
daily  like  well-kept  horses,  trained  to  be  led  and  handled,  always  cared 
for,  and  never  beaten  or  abused,  have  become  in  the  course  of  genera- 
tions perfectly  domesticated.  If  the  American  stock-growers,  who  are 
now  seeking  to  import  Swiss  cattle  for  breeding  purposes,  will  only  im- 
port Swiss  herdsmen  to  take  care  of  them  the  result  cannot  fail  to  be 
valuable  in  more  than  one  respect.  Even  the  fat  oxen  on  their  way  to 
the  shambles  are  led  in  pairs  like  horses,  and  instead  of  being  jammed 
into  crowded  cars,  mauled  through  the  streets  to  noisome,  muddy  stock- 
yards and  abattoirs,  they  are  carefully  and  humanely  treated  until  the 
last  moment  of  their  lives. 

THE  SWISS  SYSTEM  OF   SLAUGHTERING. 

The  arrangement  for  slaughtering  cattle  in  the  city  of  Basle  is  so 
perfect  that  a  brief  allusion  to  it  may  be  pertinent  to  the  object  of  this 
report. 

On  the  Ehine  bank,  below  the  city,  is  a  large,  newly-constructed  abat- 
toir, built  by  the  city  government  and  placed  under  the  care  of  Di- 
rector Siegmund,  an  accomplished  veterinary  surgeon,  who  inspects  all 
animals  before  they  are  allowed  to  be  slaughtered,  and  controls  all  the 
processes  of  preparing  the  meat  for  market. 

Dr.  Siegmund  has  invented  and  put  in  use  at  this  establishment  per- 
haps the  most  perfect  and  merciful  instrument  yet  constructed  for  kill- 
ing cattle. 

It  consists  of  a  mast  or  plate  of  iron,  which  fits  the  forehead  of  the 
animal,  and  is  readily  attached  by  straps  which  are  fastened  round  the 
horns.  In  the  center  of  the  mask  is  fixed  a  steel  gun,  10  inches  long 
and  of  about  .38  caliber,  the  breech  being  outward  and  provided  with 
a  steel  needle,  which,  on  being  struck  with  a  small  hammer,  explodes 
the  ordinary  metallic  cartridge  with  which  it  is  loaded.  The  barrel  is 
fixed  at  such  an  angle  to  the  interior  surface  of  the  mask  that  the  bul- 
let pierces  the  center  of  the  brain  and  is  buried  in  the  spinal  marrow, 
producing  instantaneous  and  painless  death.  With  tame,  quiet  cattle, 
a  form  of  this  implement  is  used  which  is  not  bound  to  the  head,  but 
simply  applied  to  the  forehead  and  fired.  In  either  case  the  result  is 
the  same.  The  ox  walks  without  fear  or  apprehension  to  the  shambles, 
a  touch  is  given  to  the  fatal  needle,  and  the  huge  creature  drops,  utterly 
dead  and  incapable  of  suffering.  The  bleeding  afterwards  is  perfect, 
and  thus  the  only  excuse  that  can  be  decently  urged  for  killing  cattle 
by  long  and  painful  methods  is  met  and  overcome. 

Compare  this  instantaneous  process  with  the  barbarous  methods  in 
use  elsewhere,  of  pounding  cattle  on  the  head  with  a  sledge  or  swinging 
them  up  alive  by  a  hind  leg  to  bellow  and  struggle  until  they  bleed  to 
death. 

MEAT  PRODUCT  OF  VARIOUS  CATTLE. 

The  following  interesting  statistics,  which  were  collected  for  this  pur- 
pose at  the  Basle  abattoir,  will  show  the  origin  and  live  and  dressed 
weight  of  a  number  of  cattle  recently  slaughtered  there,  together  with 


296 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


the  weight  of  hide,  tallow,  and  percentage  of  dressed  to  live  weight  in 
the  case  of  each  animal : 


Nativity. 

Hide. 

Tallow. 

Live 
weight. 

Dressed 

weight. 

Percentage 
of  dressed 
weight. 

Pounds. 
128 

Pounds. 
190 

Pounds. 

820 

Pounds. 
1  020 

56 

Do     

1-27 

1J4 

,518 

8C4 

57 

Do                          ..              

94 

126 

,330 

849 

64 

Do 

102 

140 

394 

827 

59 

Italy  (  Piedmont)                     .                 

101 

1S2 

670 

919 

55 

Do 

99 

130 

422 

800 

56 

85 

88 

250 

741 

59 

Do                                     

10G 

60 

,250 

7f>6 

GO 

Do 

106 

100 

570 

902 

57 

Switzerland                                                  .  ....... 

124 

60 

,  550 

9°  2 

59 

Do  

103 

93 

,440 

875 

(il 

Do 

117 

f>6 

3^4 

802 

65 

Do                                                         

110 

68 

1,340 

796 

59 

Do  

112 

65 

1,340 

818 

61 

Do 

145 

90 

1,400 

855 

61 

From  statistics  furnished  to  Mr.  Page,  superintendent  of  the  Anglo- 
Swiss  Condensed  Milk  Company  at  Cham,  it  appears  that  the  average 
weight  of  dressed  meat  derived  from  oxen  of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  race 
is  850  pounds.  An  ox  of  this  race  weighing  alive  1,650  pounds  should 
yield  880  pounds  of  salable  meat,  or  53  per  cent,  of  the  live  weight. 
Swiss  cattle,  particularly  of  the  Brown  race,  are  rarely  thoroughly  fat- 
tened, and  many  of  the  animals  sent  to  the  butcher  are  discarded  cows. 

ARTIFICIAL  FEEDING. 

The  subject  of  artificial  feeding  is  too  elaborate  and  unsettled  to  be 
fully  discussed  in  this  report,  and  the  materials  used  here  differ  so 
greatly  from  those  used  in  the  United  States  that  this  comparison  loses 
much  of  its  practical  importance.  By  far  the  greater  number  of  Swiss 
farmers  feed  nothing  but  cut  grass  and  hay  at  all  seasons. 

Artificial  feeding,  of  course,  increases  the  quantity  of  milk,  particu- 
larly in  winter,  but  most  Swiss  assert  that  it  injures  its  quality. 

THE  FEEDING:  OF   CALVES. 

In  the  raising  of  calves  the  best  approved  method  recommends,  as  the 
daily  portion  of  food,  3  liters  (quarts)  of  milk  during  the  first  week,  4J 
quarts  daily  during  the  second  week,  0  quarts  during  the  third  week", 
7£  during  the  fourth,  and  thence  to  the  eleventh  week  9  quarts  per  day. 
During  the  fourth  week  the  use  of  corn  or  oat  meal  is  begun ;  also  oats 
in  the  kernel,  commencing  with  a  half  pound  per  day,  which  is  gradually 
increased  to  a  daily  portion  of  1£  pounds  of  corn  or  oat  meal,  and  also 
the  same  quantity  of  oats  and  a  like  weight  of  dry  hay,  and  this  regi- 
men is  maintained  until  the  calves  are  six  months  old,  when  they  may  be 
treated  as  adult  cattle. 

TRANSPORTATION  OF   SWISS  CATTLE   TO  THE  UNITED   STATES. 

Live  cattle  are  not  generally  regarded  as  really  desirable  freight  on 
the  first-class  passenger  steamships,  and  the  rates  charged  by  them  for 
such  transportation  are  high.  The  North  German  Lloyd  line  charges 
$100  per  head  from  Bremen  to  New  York,  and  $80  per  head  from  Bre- 
men to  Baltimore.  These  rates  include  food  and  water  for  the  animals 


SWITZERLAND. 


297 


during  the  voyage.  The  Bordelaise  steamship  line  charges  $80  per 
head  from  Bordeaux  to  New  York.  But  the  White  Gross  steamship 
]ine  offers  the  following  rates  for  live  cattle  from  Antwerp  to  New  York 
or  Boston:  Adult  cattle,  per  head,  $39;  yearlings,  $34;  calves,  $30. 

These  charges  include  also  food  and  water  for  the  animals  during  the 
voyage,  and  free  passage  for  the  necessary  men  in  charge  of  them.  If 
the  cattle  are  unattended,  an  extra  charge  of  $1  per  head  is  made  for 
feeding  and  care  during  the  passage.  A  car-load  of  cattle  from.  Basle 
to  Antwerp  costs  about  $55,  and  as  a  car  will  carry  from  ten  to  twelve 
head  of  ordinary  sized  cows,  the  net  cost  of  transportation  from  here  to 
Few  York  or  Boston  can  be  very  closely  estimated. 

The  importation  of  fine  breeding  cattle  is,  of  course,  expensive  under 
even  the  most  favorable  conditions,  but  the  economic  advantages  of 
establishing  the  Brown  and  Spotted  cattle  races  of  Switzerland  in  the 
United  States  would  seem  to  be  so  obvious  as  to  fully  justify  whatever 
expenditure  such  enterprise  may  involve. 

FRANK  H.  MASON, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Basle,  November  22,  1883. 


SWISS   CATTLE   STATISTICS.    • 
[Inclosures  in  Consul  ^Mason's  (Basle)  report.] 
Bernese  Spotted  (Saanen  Simmentkal)  "breed. 


Description. 

Bernese 
Spotted. 

Brown 

Schwytzer. 

Annual  average  product  of  milk 

pounds 

7  162   to  7  665 

7  000  to  7  454 

Quantity  of  milk  to  1  pound  of  butter  ............ 

do  

26    to       30 

29* 

Quantity  of  milk  to  1  pound  of  cheese 

do 

9J  to       10 

lOi 

Dimensions  of  cow  : 
Length 

84 

80 

Height  

..do    .. 

55 

51 

Dimensions  of  bull  : 
Length  ...... 

do 

86 

78 

Height  

do.... 

56 

54 

"Weight  at  maturity  : 
Cow  

.  ......pounds.. 

1,400    to  1,700 

1,200  to  1,500 

do 

2  000    to  2,500 

1,400  to  1,800 

Age  at  maturity: 

4 

4 

Oxen  

5 

5 

Principal  markets:  Cantons  of  Uri,  Schwytz,  and  Ztig. 

Habitat.— Central  and  Western  Switzerland. 

Color. — Bernese  Spotted:  White,  with  light  red,  yellow,  or  dark-red  spots.  Brown 
Sclucytzcr :  Brown  or  inonse  color;  bulls  darker,  same  color. 

How  long  bred  pure. — Bernese  Spotted:  Many  centuries.  Brown  Schwytzer  :  Since  be- 
fore authentic  history. 

Origin. — Bernese  Spotted:  Possibly  Holland,  but  the  race  has  been  refined  and  im- 
proved in  Switzerland.  Brown  Schwytzer:  Canton  Schwytz,  Switzerland. 

Working  qualities.— Bernese  Spotted :  The  best  working  race  of  cattle  in  Switzer- 
land ;  believed  to  be  unsurpassed  in  Europe.  Brown  Scliwytzer :  Works  well  in  yoke, 
but  is  not  bred  for  that  purpose. 

Principal  markets. — Bernese  Spotted :  Erlenbach,  Saanen,  Z  weisimraen.  Brown  ScJiwyt- 
zei':  Cantons  of  the  Schwytz  and  Zug.  • 

Other  varieties. — The  Frieburg  breed  is  similar  to  the  Bernese  Spotted,  but  has 
black  spots.  Minor  breeds  of  Spotted  Swiss  are  (1)  Frutig  Adelboden;  color,  red 
and  white ;  principal  market,  Reichenbach,  Canton  Bern  j  (2)  Walliser,  smaller, 
varied  colors. 


298  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

STATISTICS  OF  BROWN  SCHWYTZER  CATTLE. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  BYERS,  OF  ZURICH. 

In  compliance  with  the  Department's  circular  of  July  18,  I  transmit 
tabular  statements  as  to  certain  Swiss  cattle  best  suited  for  importa- 
tion and  breeding  in  the  United  States. 

In  addition  to  these  tables,  I  wish  to  offer  some  remarks  that  may  be 
of  interest  to  cattle  breeders  who  are  intent  on  securing  only  the  very 
best  breeds  of  milch  cows. 

First,  I  would  like  to  call  attention  to  my  report  on  "  Swiss  dairy  thrift," 
printed  in  Ko.  22,  of  Consular  Reports ;  also  to  my  report  on  uMilk  con- 
densing "  in  Switzerland,  in  Consular  Eeport  No.  27.  I  refer  to  these 
in  order  to  save  too  much  repetition  of  the  same  facts  in  the  present 
report,  though  some  repetition  will  be  necessary  for  convenience. 

The  information  contained  in  the  tabular  statements,  I  may  premise, 
are  believed  to  be  very  authentic  and  trustworthy,  as  they  are  com- 
piled for  me  by  some  of  the  best  cattle-growers  in  the  country. 

As  remarked  in  a  previous  report,  Switzerland  has  been  famous  for 
the  productions  of  its  dairies  for  centuries.  At  the  international  cat- 
tle show  in  Paris,  in  1878,  every  Swiss  cow  exhibited  bore  away  a  prize. 
The  result  of  exhibiting  Swiss  cows  has  been  almost  as  favorable  at 
other  fairs  in  Europe,  and  <  specially  at  the  great  cattle  show  of  Ham- 
burg, recently  closed.  The  Brown  Schwytzer  race  of  cows  has,  within 
a  few  years,  or  rather  since  Switzerland  has  commenced  exhibiting  at 
international  shows  at  all,  borne  away  premiums  from  Holland,  Eng- 
land, Denmark,  and  other  famous  cattle-producing  countries. 

These  Brown  Schwytzers  are  not  a  new  race  of  cattle,  suddenly  dis- 
covered to  be  of  great  value  for  the  dairy.  On  the  contrary  they  were 
known  for  their  good  qualities  long  ago,  and  the  breed  has,  in  certain 
districts,  been  kept  pure  for  several  centuries.  The  Brown  Schwytzer  is 
a  native  of  Switzerland,  and  has  its  name  from  the  canton  of  Schwytz, 
where  the  race  has  been  bred  longest,  and  where  the  purest  blood  is 
found  to  day. 

The  leading  characteristics  of  this  cow  are — 

(1)  Its  good  milking  qualities. 

(2)  Its  perfectly  mild  disposition. 

(3)  Its  adaptability  to  most  climates  and  localities. 

(4)  Its  great  beauty  of  form  and  color. 

THE  BROWN  SCHWYTZERS  AS  MILKERS. 

A  good  Brown  Schwytzer  will  average,  for  three  hundred  and  sixty- 
five  days  in  the  year,  not  less  than  10  quarts  of  milk  daily,  and  that 
on  grass  and  hay  alone.  This  is  not  the  exceptional  rate,  resulting 
from  special  care  and  special  feeding,  but  the  good  average  of  thou- 
sands of  these  cows,  taken  from  whole  herds.  I  shall  avoid  entirely 
here  any  reference  to  special  cases  of  extraordinary  milk  production,  as 
being  useless  and  misleading.  I  take  it  that  what  our  farmers  wish  is 
facts  as  to  what  an  average  good  Swiss  cow  will  produce,  not  for  a  few 
months  only,  but  for  every  day  in  the  year. 

Fortunately,  there  are  some  reliable  records  to  be  had,  showing  just 
about  what  this  average  production  is.  I  quote,  first,  from  my  report  on 
"  Swiss  dairy  thrift,"  some  statements  based  on  recorded  experience  of 


SWITZERLAND.  299 

the  "Anglo-Swiss  Condensed  Milk  Company "  at  Cham.  Perhaps  no 
more  reliable  statistics  as  to  milk  production  exist  in  the  world  than 
the  books  of  this  company.  It  is,  in  short,  the  largest  milk-condensing 
company  known. 

It  uses  the  milk  of  not  less  than  from  five  to  six  thousand  cows  at  the 
principal  factory  in  Switzerland,  and  of  as  many  more  at  the  company's 
condensing  establishments  in  England. 

The  company's  director,  Mr.  George  H.  Page  (an  American), feeds  (as 
private  property)  the  very  finest  herd  of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  cows  I 
have  found  in  the  country.  Mr.  Page  keeps  his  herd  of  thirty  cows  in 
a  large  rectangular  house,  with  brick  walls  and  tile  roof.  The  very 
broad  ceiling  is,  unsupported  except  by  outer  walls.  It  is  very  high, 
and  the  whole  immense  room  where  the  herd  stands  is  plastered  through- 
out, and  furnished  with  every  modern  improvement  as  to  mangers, 
floors,  ventilation,  &c.  This  fine  herd  ranges  in  age  from  three  to  five 
years,  few  being  over  three  years,  and  the  cows  average  in  weight 
1,400  English  pounds.  One  of  them,  a  four-year-old  (an  exception  of 
course),  weighs  1,810  English  pounds.  The  cows  of  this  herd  are,  per- 
haps, in  all  respects  above  the  average  of  Schwytzer,  as  they  were 
mostly  choice  selections,  and  paid  for  accordingly,  at  prices  reaching  in 
single  cases  $200  to  $240. 

Mr.  Page  feeds  only  grass  and  hay,  summer  and  winter,  and  that  is 
worth  bearing  in  mind.  His  cows  are  taken  out  to  exercise  daily,  but 
never  graze.  Twenty-six  of  these  three-year-old  heifers  produced  in 
April,  May,  and  June  (after  first  calf)  28,076  liters  of  milk,  or  12  quarts 
per  cow  daily  ;  a  large  average  when  it  is  remembered  that  it  includes 
almost  every  cow  in  the  herd,  and  that  none  were  at  the  best  milking 
age.  Mr.  Page  counts  on  these  twenty-six  cows  averaging  15  liters 
daily,  this  coming  year  1883.  Three  of  the  two-aud-three-fourths  year 
old  heifers  gave  at  highest  points  19J  quarts  daily,  and  averaged  10 
quarts  the  year  through.  Three  others,  after  second  calf,  gave  24 
quarts  daily Vor  three  months,  and  maintained  a  high  average  through- 
out the  year.  It  will  be  most  interesting  to  see  the  coining  year's  rec- 
ord of  these  Swiss  cows  stalled  and  fed  on  common-sense  principles. 
The  reports  of  the  milk  and  butter  of  the  many  thousands  of  cows  con- 
tributing to  the  condensing  factory  of  Cham  are  most  interesting. 

In  the  year  1881  the  condensers  used  the  milk  of  between  5,000  and 
6,000  grass  and  hay  fed  cows.  They  were  milked  about  nine  months, 
and  produced  on  an  average  5,315  pounds  of  milk  per  cow  ;  that  is,  19.7 
pounds  or  9.8  quarts  of  milk  per  cow  daily,  for  the  milking  season. 

In  England,  last  year,  5,000  to  6,000  of  the  famous  Shorthorn  cows 
furnished  to  the  English  branch  of  the  establishment  an  average  of 
4,668  pounds  milk  per  cow  for  the  milking  year,  showing  a  difference  in 
favor  of  the  Swiss  cows  of  647  pounds  of  milk  per  year. 

The  English  farmers  add  oil  cake,  roots,  and  other  artificial  food  to 
the  hay  of  the  cows,  but  they  do  not  stall  them  so  warmly  in  winter. 
In  general,  the  milk  supply  is  better  in  Switzerland  in  winter  than  it  is 
in  England.  According  to  the  report  of  the  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture of  the  United  States  in  1875,  the  highest,  average  of  milk  received 
at  the  best  dairies  of  the  State  of  New  York  reached  4,008  pounds  f6r 
a  high-fed  cow  in  the  year,  a  difference  in  favor  of  Swiss  cows,  without 
extra  food,  of  1,307  pounds  per  year.  The  average  of  fat  contained  in 
the  milk  of  these  thousands  of  Swiss  cows  is  3.3  per  cent.,  though  single 
cows  show  4  to  4J  per  cent,  fat,  or  oil,  in  the  milk. 

The  terms  "  fat "  and  "  butter  "  are  used  synonymously,  for  while  there 
is  more  butter  than,  fat  or  oil  contained  in  the  milk?  the  butter  cannot 


300  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

be  taken  away  wholly,  hence  the  amount  obtained  about  equals  the  fat. 
It  is  found  that  something  less  than  31  pounds  of  milk  is  required  to 
produce  1  pound  of  butter.  At  this  rate,  the  Swiss  hay-fed  cows  fur- 
nishing milk  to  the  Cham  Condensing  Company  could  produce,  on  an 
average,  say  175  pounds  of  butter  to  the  cow  for  the  season  ;  an  aver- 
age that  would  bear  most  favorable  comparison  with  the  average  butter 
of  0,000  high-fed  cows  of  the  State  of  New  York. 

At  the  celebrated  monastery  of  Einsiedeln,  in  Canton  Schwytz,  a 
careful  record  is  also  kept  of  the  product  of  the  cows. 

One  hundred  and  twelve  head  of  cattle  are  kept  at  the  monastery. 
Of  these,  fifty- seven  are  Brown  Schwytzer  cows.  They  receive  no  feed 
except  grass  and  hay,  the  year  through.  The  average  of  milk  is  10 
liters  per  cow,  the  whole  year  through.  The  highest  quantity  reached 
is  20  liters  daily,  given  by  some  twenty  cows  of  the  fifty-seven,  in  the 
months  of  May,  June,  and  July. 

The  cows  calve  mostly  in  autumn  and  spring.  The  latter  season  is 
preferred.  At  present,  July  6,  more  than  half  the  cows  are  herded  on 
the  Upper  Alps.  They  were  taken  up  in  May  and  will  come  down  in 
September.  The  milk,  while  up  there,  will  average  much  less,  but  it 
will  be  excessively  rich,  owing  to  the  sweetness  of  the  short  and  scarce 
Alpine  grass.  Only  the  lighter  cows  are  sent  up  on  the  Alpina  slopes. 
Their  milk,  while  there,  will  be  made  into  butter  and  cheese  in  the  lit- 
tle stone  huts  of  the  herdsmen,  or  "  Senns,'7  and  these  will  be  brought 
down  in  the  autumn,  when  there  will  be  a  village  festival  in  their  honor. 
The  cloister  keeps  five  hands  only  for  the  one  hundred  and  twelve  head 
of  cattle.  These  do  all  the  feeding,  grass-cutting,  milking,  &c.  The 
wages  paid  them-  are  very  low;  in  summer  6  francs  a  week  only,  and 
board.  Board  is  as  follows: 

Breakfast:  Coffee,  milk,  and  bread.     (No butter.) 

Dinner :  Soup,  wine,  meat,  vegetables,  and  bread.     (No  meat  Fridays  and  fast  days.) 

Slipper:  Soup,  potatoes,  and  bread.     Potatoes  changed  for  meat,  half  the  evenings. 

They  work  from  4.30  in  the  morning  till  7  in  the  evening.  One  man 
can  milk  twelve  cows  in  one  and  a  half  hours.  In  winter  one  man  is 
expected  to  attend  to  fifteen  cows. 

Good  cows  of  Einsiedelu  sell  readily  at  from  $100  to  $125.  Even  $150 
to  S200  is  not  so  rare  a  price.  These  are  not  fancy  prices.  They  are 
given  because  the  cows  warrant  the  investment.  Good  young  Schwyt- 
zer  bulls  at  Einsiedeln  are  worth  about  $150.  One  of  the  cloister  bulls, 
three  years  old,  which  took  second  premium  at  Lucerne  cattle  fair,  is 
valued  at  $200.  He  was  worth  $250  at  two  years  old.  At  three  to  four 
years  old  bulls  are  sold  to  the  butcher.  Most  of  the  Bmsiedeln  calves 
are  raised.  The  poorer  ones  are  sold  at  two  weeks  old  to  the  butchers, 
and  bring  about  $6.  Only  one  opinion  prevails  at  Einsiedeln  as  to  feed 
for  milch  cows.  Quantity  of  milk  may  be.  and  is,  increased  by  artificial 
feed,  but  the  quality  they  claim,  as  do  most  dairymen  in  the  country, 
is  reduced. 

Farmer  L ,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Einsiedelu,  gave  me  the  record 

of  his  herd  of  some  twenty-five  cows.  He  has  been  keeping  milch  cows 
on  this  farm  for  fifty  years.  The  average  of  result  was  not  materially 
different  from  the  average  of  other  small  and  select  herds.  His  cows 
give  10  liters  of  milk  each  daily,  year  in,  year  out.  He  has  what  is  a 
great  exception,  well-ventilated  cow-stalls.  He  gives  the  usual  allow- 
ance of  hay,  viz,  30  pounds  daily  to  the  cow,  and  a  spoonful  of  salt  every 
other  day.  He  also  adds  bran  and  shorts  to  grass — a  rare  exception.  All 
his  milk  goes  to  neighboring  factories,  and  is  paid  for  at  the  stalls  when 
milked  at  4  cents  a  quart.  His  fine  herd  average  about  1,300  to  1,400 


SWITZERLAND.  oOl 

pounds  in  weight.  They  are  never  out  of  the  stall,  not  even  to  water. 
It  seemed  an  unusual  occasion  i'or  them  Avhen  be  had  them  all  led  out 
into  the  yard  for  my  inspection. 

At  or  near  to  Thalweil,  I  secured  the  statistics  of  a  dairy  using  the 
milk  of  seventy-five  cows.  These  seventy-five  cows  furnished  700  quarts 
daily,  or  about  10  quarts  each,  year  in,  year  out,  not  counting  the  milk 
retained  at  home  for  the  use  of  the  families  owning  the  cows.  In  July, 
850  quarts  daily  are  sent  to  the  dairy.  The  milk  is  sold  at  16  centimes, 
or  3.2  cents,  the  liter  at  this  place,  when  not  made  into  cheese. 

The  Cham  Condensing  Company  pay  the  farmers  lo£  centimes,  or 
2.6  cents,  per  quart  or  liter  of  2  pounds. 

A  fair  average  for  Schwytzer  cows  in  Canton  Zurich  would  be  about 
10  quarts  daily  for  three  hundred  and  sixty-five  days  in  the  year.  Of 
course  this  average  differs  in  the  different  districts  of  the  country,  and 
especially  in  the  mountainous  cantons,  where  the  product  is  less,  though 
the  quality  is  considerably  richer,  owing  to  the  sweeter  grass.  So  much 
for  the  Brown  Schwytzer  as  a  milker. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  BROWN  SCHWYTZEES. 

In  appearance,  the  Brown  Schwyfczer  is  not  really  brown  at  all,  but 
mouse- colored,  and  the  nearer  she  is  to  the  mouse  color  the  more  likely 
is  the  stock  to  be  pure.  She  is  round  and  plump  in  form,  with  very 
straight  back ;  has  sleek  hair,  large,  mild,  black  eyes,  smooth,  white 
horns,  tipped  one-third  their  length  with  black.  Ears  large  and  lined 
with  an  abundance  of  white  or  cream-colored  hair.  The  neck  is  rather 
short  and  powerful ;  breast  deep  and  broad ;  the  head  is  finely  shaped ; 
nose  black  with  white  ring  about  it ;  tongue  also  very  black  and  rough. 
The  udder  is  large,  well  shaped,  and  quite  white,  milk  veins  very  prom- 
inent. Owing  to  her  general  plumpness  of  figure,  she  looks  some  smaller 
than  she  really  is,  as  she  is  in  fact  a  large  cow.  Her  ordinary  weight 
will  average  1,300  to  3,400  Swiss  pounds,  and  often  more.  Altogether, 
she  is  as  handsome  a  cow  as  exists  anywhere  in  Europe.  The  accom- 
panying cuts  and  photographs  give  a  fair  representation  of  her  form 
and  appearance. 

Ordinarily,  though  there  are  single  exceptions,  the  Swiss  cows  are 
fed  only  grass  and  hay,  summer  and  winter,  and  this,  in  the  valleys  at 
least,  is  always  earned  to  them  in  the  stalls.  The  Swiss  cattle  stalls 
are  usually  low  stone  houses,  with  little  or  no  ventilation,  and  are  almost 
dark.  They  are  kept  very  clean,  however,  and  the  cattle  are  cared  for 
almost  as  well  as  Americans  care  for  fine  horses,  many  being  even  car- 
ried and  cleaned  daily.  Every  pound  of  manure  is  saved  in  a  reservoir 
and  put  into  the  meadows  in  liquid  form. 

FEEDING-  AND  CARING-  FOR  "BROWN  SCHWYTZERS. 

By  extreme  care  of  meadows  in  the  way  of  manuring,  draining,  water- 
ing, and  preventing  stock  trampling  them,  large  and  excellent  grass 
crops  are  secured;  and,  aided  by  a  moist  and  temperate  climate,  three 
grass  harvests  are  obtained  yearly.  In  Canton  Zurich  grass  land  is 
valued  at  $300  per  acre,  and  good  Schwytzer  cows  at  from  $125  to  $150 
apiece;  and  yet,  by  their  unusual  care  of  both  meadows  and  cattle, 
Swiss  farmers  earn  from  8  to  10  per  cent,  on  the  investment,  and  sell 
milk  at  cheaper  rates  than  are  demanded  anywhere  in  the  United  States. 
Naturally,  the  query  is  repeated,  What  profits  might  Western  American 
farmers  make  on  milch  cows,  with  land  at  $50  an  acre  and  cows  at  840 


302  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

* 

apiece,  were  the  same  care  taken  of  cows  and  meadows  in  America  as  ia 
taken  in  Switzerland  ? 

Only  two  items  in  the  list  are  against  us,  viz,  dearer  labor  and  "scrub" 
races  of  cows. 

The  former  is  outbalanced  by  the  dearer  laud  in  Switzerland,  and  as 
to  the  "scrub"  cows,  it  is  our  own  fault  if  we  continue  milking  them. 
They  cost  as  much  to  feed  and  to  breed  and  to  milk  as  good  cows,  and 
the  profit  on  them  is  not  nearly  as  much. 

BROWN  SCHWYTZERS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  here  that  certain  Americans  in  the  Eastern 
and  New  England  States  have  been  trying  these  "Schwytzer"  cows  on 
Yankee  soil  for  the  last  ten  years,  and,  as  I  am  informed,  with  the  most 
satisfactory  results.  Otherwise,  some  of  these  same  breeders  would  not 
have  been  in  Switzerland  in  this  year  1883  adding  to  their  stock  of 
Brown  Schwytzers. 

There  is  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  I  think,  a  society  called  the  "  Brown 
Swiss  Breeder's  Association,"  and  a  " record"  or  "  herd-book n  of  the 
Swiss  cows  bred  and  owned  by  them  has  been  published.  As  this  so- 
ciety is  increasing  its  herd  of  Schwytzers,  it  would  seem  conclusive 
proof  that  this  race  of  cattle  takes  well  to  the  climate  and  the  soil  of 
the  United  States. 

The  first  Swiss  cattle  breeder  and  dealer  to  send  Schwytzers  to  the 
United  States  was  Landammann  Burgi,  of  Arth,  Canton  Schwytz. 
He  is  still  in  the  business,  and  breeders  and  importers  of  cattle  cannot 
do  better  than  to  correspond  with  him  directly.  Mr.  John  Bruppaeher, 
of  Euschlikon,  Canton  Zurich,  is  also  engaged  in  delivering  Swiss  cattlo 
to  foreign  countries.  Still  another  dealer  and  breeder  is  Mr.  Berg,  at 
Schwytz,  who  owns  a  fine  herd  on  the  Frohn  Alp,  by  Lake  Lucerne  $ 
also  Mr.  Giger,  of  Eagatz,  who  breeds  and  sells  cattle. 

THE  BROWN  SCHWYTZERS  IN  EUROPEAN  COUNTRIES. 

Within  a  few  years  the  sale  of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  cow  to  other 
countries  has  been  on  the  rapid  increase^  and  prices  have  gone  up  from 
50  to  60  francs  on  a  cow  in  a  single  year.  The  principal  countries  im- 
porting these  cows  have  been  Italy,  Germany,  and  Kussia. 

Small  numbers  have  been  taken  to  England,  America,  and  Spain. 
With  the  exception  of  Spain,  I  have  heard  only  satisfactory  reports  as 
to  the  results  of  these  importations,  even  where  climates  and  soils  dif- 
fer so  widely. 

MARKET  VALUE  OF  BROWN  SCHWYTZERS. 

A  year  ago  I  reported  to  the  Department  that  Brown  Schwytzers  were 
being  exported  quite  largely  to  Italy,  Germany,  and  elsewhere,  and  that 
the  prices  for  the  same  were  rapidly  rising. 

Within  a  few  days,  by  attending  cattle  markets  at  Eagatz,  Sargans, 
and  points  in  Appenzell,  I  have  collected  material  as  to  prices  obtained 
at  absolute  sales,  and  I  find  the  average  market  value  constantly  rising, 
though  checked  at  present,  of  course,  by  approaching  winter  and  rainy 
days  at  the  market  towns.  The  prices  demanded  varied  immensely, 
regular  dealers  demanding  20  per  cent,  more  than  did  the  farmers  for 
the  similar  stock. 


SWITZERLAND.  303 

In  the  neighborhood  of  Bagatz,  Vason,  Mayenfeld,  and  down  towards 
Cantoa  Zurich,  prices  for  Brown  Schwitzer  cattle  average  about  as  fol- 
lows: 

Francs. 

Yearling  steers 300  to  600 

Two-year-old  steers... 500      700 

Yearling  heifers 200      300 

Cows  with  calf 500      900 

Young  cows 500      800 

Old  cows 300      400 

Yearling  bulls 700      800 

One  and  a  half  year  old  bulls,  900  to  1,200. 

Good  six  months  old  calves,  about  200  francs. 

At  a  Sargans  market  this  month  I  found  prices  considerably  lower 
than  those  quoted  above;  they  vary  in  fact  in  the  different  valleys 
materially,  and  at  different  seasons  of  the  year. 

I  purchased  for  Americans,  last  August,  in  Canton  Zurich,  a  number 
of  fiae  four  and  five  year  old  cows,  at  650  to  800  francs  each,  and  for  a 
year  and  a  half  old  bull,  1,000  francs  was  paid. 

They  were  all  select  cattle. 

HOW  TO  EXPORT  SWISS  CATTLE. 

The  freight  from  Zurich  to  Antwerp  per  car  load  is  about  300  francs. 
The  freight  on  cattle  per  "White  Cross  line"  from  Antwerp  to  New 
York,  or  to  Boston,  is  as  follows : 

Per  head. 

For  grown  cattle £8 

For  yearlings  .-.,„ 7 

For  calves 6 

The  foregoing  includes  water  and  feed  on  shipboard.  The  men  ac- 
companying the  stock  have  free  passage.  If  no  men  accompany  the 
stock  the  ship  company  provides  hands  for  the  purpose,  and  an  extra 
charge  of  4  shillings  per  head  is  made. 

In  short,  the  cost  of  transporting  full-grown  cattle  from  Zurich  to  New 
York  may  be  reckoned  at  very  nearly  $50  per  head,  and  for  yearlings. 
$40. 

S.  H.  M.  BYEES, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Zurich,  October  23,  1883. 


SWISS  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  PRODUCTS. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  BEATTCHAMP,  OF  ST.  GALLE. 
GOVERNMENTAL  ASSISTANCE  TO  SWISS  CATTLE -BREEDERS. 

Switzerland  claims  for  herself  one  of  the  first  positions  among  the 
European  states  with  regard  to  her  cattle,  milk,  and  the  products 
thereof.  The  principal  breeds  are  widely  known  in  Europe  and  their 
origin  dates  with  the  beginning  of  Swiss  history.  As  breeders  they  are 
much  sought  after.  When  a  farmer  or  cattle-raiser  in  Germany,  Italy, 
or  France  wishes  to  improve  his  breed  he  generally  makes  a  selection 
from  QI  Swiss  herd,  for  experience  has  long  since  been  made  that  Swiss 


304 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


cattle,  reared  and  grazed  on  Alpine  grass,  with  plenty  of  fresh  running 
water  and  pure  air,  are  the  healthiest  and  hardiest  known  to  the  herd- 
book. 

The  Swiss  breeder  pays  great  attention  to  "pare  bloods,"  and  is  very 
careful  that  no  " cross"  occurs,  which  accounts  for  so  many  "pure- 
bloods  "  one  sees  in  the  Swiss  herd-book.  As  a  rule  only  the  finest 
formed  and  best  marked  animals  are  kept  for  breeding  purposes,  and 
the  result  is  that  the  quality  of  Swiss  cattle  is  yearly  improving.  To 
encourage  farmers  and  breeders  in  this  respect  the  various  cantonal 
and  district  governments  in  Switzerland  offer  premiums  in  stipulated 
sums  to  be  awarded  at  the  county  and  district  fairs,  which  are  held  in 
the  spring  and  fall  of  each  year.  This  system  of  governmental  recog- 
nition and  assistance  is  a  great  stimulant  to  breeders  of  pure  bloods, 
and  beyond  cavil  a  proved  success.  In  the  award  of  premiums  the 
greatest  care  is  taken  by  the  judges  in  considering  all  points,  and  the 
least  defect  as  to  color,  form,  size,  &c.,  often  proves  disastrous  to  the 
exhibitor,  and  the  consequence  is  that  the  farmers  and  breeders  are 
always  on  the  qui  vive  that  their  pure-bloods  reproduce  themselves 
in  their  offspring.  I  am  informed  by  reliable  cattlemen  that  this  gov- 
ernmental assistance  has  had  a  marked  effect  in  the  cattle  improvement 
of  Switzerland,  and  that  it  is  confidently  expected  that  within  the  next 
half  century  the  Swiss  breeds  would  not  only  be  a  pure  line  of  blooded 
stock,  rich  in  the  product  of  milk  and  the  products  thereof,  but  excel- 
lent in  meat,  and  a  perfect  show  animal,  beautiful  in  form  and  color. 
About  three  years  ago  the  federal  authorities  ordered  experts  to  make 
an  examination  into  all  pedigreed  cattle  in  Switzerland,  giving  names, 
ages,  degrees,  &c.;  which  was  done,  and  the  report  condensed  into  a 
herd-book,  where  all  the  pedigrees  of  pure-blooded  cattle  :n  this  country 
may  be  found. 

Switzerland  contains  but  two  distinct  original  breeds,  as  follows :  (1) 
The  Spotted  or  Fleckvieh  race ;  (2)  the  Brown  Schwytzer  or  Braunvie 
race.  There  are,  however,  several  offshoots  from  the  two  principal 
breeds,  which  will  be  considered  further  on  in  this  report. 

THE  SPOTTED  BREED. 

The  Swiss  Spotted  breed  belong  to  the  heaviest  of  the  European 
races.  In  evidence  of  this  fact  a  case  is  cited  where  a  Simmon  thai  cow 
of  this  breed,  which  was  premiuined  at  a  cattle  show  held  at  Lucerne  in 
1881,  weighed  1,134  kilograms. 

Out  of  other  cattle  premiumed  at  the  same  fair  the  following  measure- 
ments, showing  proportions,  &c.,  are  given  in  centimeters  (1  inch= 
2.5400  centimeters),  to  give  some  idea  of  the  size  of  these  animals : 


Description. 

Height, 
top  of 
withers. 

Circum- 
ference be- 
hind 
shoulders. 

Length 
from  horns 
to  root  of 
tail. 

137 

202 

208 

Cows  (average  of  27  head)  

140 

205 

213 

Heifers  (average  of  21  head)  

135 

196 

205 

The  "  Freiburg"  cattle  represent  the  heaviest  and  coarsest  animal  of 
this  breed;  is  usually  white,  with  large  black  spots;  big  honed;  rather 
heavy  head;  long  body;  large  loose  barrel,  and  traditionally  known 


SWITZERLAND.  305 

as  a  sort  of  gluttonous,  fat-making  machine,  more  particularly  suitable 
to  produce  gross  meat  for  the  markets  at  great  expenditure  for  artificial 
food. 

The  above  measurements  represent  the  Simmenthaler  Spotted  cattle. 
They  are  a  trifle  smaller  than  the  Freiburg  cattle  and  are  better  formed, 
with  deep  shoulders,  powerful  forearm  ;  long,  straight  back ;  long  from 
shoulder-blade  to  hip-bone,  long  from  point  of  hip  to  root  of  tail;  wide, 
square  buttock,  with  round,  close  barrel ;  they  are  usually  of  white  color, 
with  pale  red  or  yellowish  spots;  white  face;  nose  milk  color,  with 
wide,  open  nostrils.  They  are  highly  recommended  as  milkers. 

The  size  of  these  animals  varies  very  much  with  physical  features,  the 
fertility  of  the  country,  and  the  more  or  less  advanced  state  of  its  agri- 
culture. In  the  high  Alp  districts,  where  the  farms  are  small  and  the 
food  poor  in  quality  and  not  very  plenty  in  quantity,  the  cows  are  smaller 
and  do  not  sell  for  more  than  $50  or  $60,  while  in  the  richer  grass-land 
districts,  where  the  artificial  manuring  is  largely  resorted  to,  the  cattle 
are  worth  much  more,  and  bring  from  $80  to  $125,  and  sometimes  more. 
Their  weight  is  from  1,500  to  2,500  pounds,  and  some  have  been  known 
to  reach  3,000  pounds,  live  weight.  Their  fattening  capacity  are  said 
to  be  very  great,  but  they  require  good  food,  careful  attention  in  their 
handling,  and  perfect  cleanliness  about  their  stalls.  The  Simmenthalers, 
or,  as  they  are  somtirnes  called,  "piebalds,"  are  considered  the  best 
milkers  among  the  Spotted  cattle.  The  better  class  cows  are  reckoned 
and  averaged  on  reliable  experiments  to  give  from  11 J  to  13J  quarts 
per  day,  counting  three  hundred  milk  days  in  the  year,  and  the  second 
class  from  9  to  11  quarts.  At  this  rate  the  better  class  cows  would 
produce  on  an  average  12  quarts  per  day,  or  3,600  quarts  in  the  year, 
which,  at  3  cents  per  quart  (a  low  average),  would  make  the  milk-yield 
of  one  cow  reach  the  sum  of  $108  per  annum. 

These  cows  are  of  a  kind  and  gentle  disposition,  and  it  is  claimed 
they  can  do  a  large  amount  of  work  without  lessening  either  the  quantity 
or  quality  of  the  milk. 

I  am  informed  that  while  the  larger  and  middle  sized  Brown  Schwytz- 
ers  are  perfectly  healthy  and  feed  well  when  grazed  on  the  open  mount- 
ains, yet  they  do  not  fatten  readily;  but  when  brought  down  in  the  lower 
districts  or  valleys  and  grazed  and  stabled,  they  not  only  fatten  much 
faster,  but  take  on  more  flesh  than  the  animal  bred  in  the  low  lauds. 
In  consequence  of  this  fact  the  German  breeders  prefer  for  fattening 
purposes  the  Swiss  cattle  bred  in  the  middle  mountain  regions.  When 
these  cattle  arrive  at  maturity  and  are  butchered  in  their  own  homes 
they  seldom  weigh  over  1,000  pounds  gross,  but  when  taken  down 
into  the  lower  valleys,  or  over  into  Bavaria  or  Baden  or  Nassau,  they 
can  be  made  to  weigh  1,600  pounds  gross  at  the  age  of  three  years. 

OFFSHOOTS  OF  THE  SPOTTED  BREED. 

From  the  original  Spotted  breed  there  are  several  offshoots ;  among 
them  are — 

(a)  The  Berneroberlander  breed,  which  is  a  shorter  and  lower  built 
animal  than  those  before  mentioned.    It  has  powerful  shoulders,  rather 
narrow  buttocks,  and  is  well  adapted  for  grazing  the  high  mountain 
sides. 

(b)  The  Jurrischer,  or  half-piebalds  cattle  of  the  Jura,  with  less  form 
and  size,  but  very  hardy,  and  easily  satisfied  with  the  hard,  dry  food  of 
the  Alps. 

H.  Ex.  51 20 


306  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

(c)  The  Ormonds,  Illiez,  and  Lotschen  breeds,  whose  homes  are  in  the 
high  mountain  dales  of  the  cantons  of  Freiburg,  Vaud,  and  Yalais,  and 
only  weigh  from  400  to  700  pounds. 

The  Swiss  breeders  hope  in  the  near  future  to  entirely  wipe  out  these 
inferior  offshoots  of  the  principal  Spotted  breed  under  the  governmental 
system  of  assisting  in  the  improvement  of  agriculture. 

THE  BROWN  SCHWYTZER  BREED. 

The  Brown  Schwy tzer  is  considered  the  dairy  breed  par  excellence  of 
Switzerland. 

When  pure  they  are  more  or  less  light  or  dark  brown,  with  muzzle 
quite  black,  and  ringed  with  cream  color ;  horns  white,  with  black  tips, 
and  medium  size ;  and  a  very  distinguishing  light-gray  streak  running 
from  the  horns  down  the  back  to  the  root  of  the  tail.  They  are  some- 
what smaller  than  the  Spotted  breed,  but  are  of  beautiful  formand  com- 
pactly built,  as  the  following  measurement  will  show : 

Measure  in  centimetws. 


• 

Height. 

Length. 

Girth. 

Bull  (average  of  11  head)             .      „..  .. 

130 

192 

1% 

Cow  (average  of  1  1  head)       .  

132 

195 

201 

Heifer  (average  of  11  head) 

126 

1S>:> 

195 

In  judging  this  breed  the  color  plays  a  far  more  important  part  than 
in  the  Spotted  breed.  The  color  most  desired  is  the  very  dark  brown, 
which  indicates  the  purer  blood. 

The  hide,  hair,  and  bones  are  much  liner,  and  the  milk  organs  much 
better  developed,  than  in  the  Spotted  breed.  The  flesh  is  also  of  a  much 
finer  fiber,  and,  consequently,  sweeter  and  tenderer,  than  the  larger 
breed. 

It  is  claimed  that  the  Brown  Schwytzer  not  only  gives  more  milk,  but 
that  it  is  richer  than  that  of  any  other  European  breed  of  cattle.  They 
are  estimated  to  produce  from  1J  to  2  quarts  more  milk  per  day  than 
the  large  Simmenthal  cow.  I  have  just  returned  from  a  visit  to  the 
stables  of  Mr.  Kuhn,  of  Degersheiin,  the  largest  pure-blooded  breeder 
of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  in  Switzerland,  and  he  tells  me  that  his  herd 
of  forty  cows  average  from  17  to  20  quarts  of  milk  per  day.  Of  course 
this  is  an  exceptional  case,  but  it  demonstrates  fully  what  this  breed  is 
capable  of  under  good  treatment. 

The  original  home  of  the  large  Brown  Schwytzer  was  in  the  cantons 
of  St.  Gall,  Schwytz,  Zurich,  Glarus,  Lucerne,  Unterwalden,  Graubiin- 
den  (lower  part),  and  Appenzell,  but  they  are  now  largely  distributed 
all  over  Switzerland,  and  in  portions  of  Germany,  Italy,  and  France. 
Many  of  the  best  young  cows  of  this  breed  are  bought  up  by  Italian 
farmers  and  drovers,  through  their  agents  in  this  country.  They  pay 
from  400  to  800  francs  per  head,  and  for  extra  fine  ones  as  high  as  1,200 
francs  is  often  paid  at  the  central  cattle  markets  at  Chur  and  Schwytz. 

MISCELLANEOUS  SWISS  BREEDS. 

In  addition  to  the  large  Brown  Schwytzer  every  valley  and  neighbor- 
hood in  East  Switzerland  has  its  own  small  cross-breed,  generally  from 
the  Brown  Schwytzer. 


SWITZERLAND.  307 

The  Toggenburg  breed  is  distinguished  by  its  dark-brown  color,  long 
slim  neck,  shapely  head,  round,  close  barrel,  and  outstretched  form,  and 
is  reputed  to  give  very  rich  inilk. 

The  Appcnzell  and  Einseidelens  have  short  thick  necks,  blackheads, 
rather  short  bodies,  and  are  of  coarser  fibered  flesh. 

The  high  Alps  of  East  Switzerland,  like  the  Berneroberland,  have 
a  very  small  breed,  which  in  some  parts  of  the  United  States  would  be 
considered  of  the  "  scrubbiest'7  order.  They  have  short  stubby  legs, 
small  round  barrels,  thick  coarse  hair,  and  easily  stand  the  cold  bleak 
winds  and  deep  snows  of  the  high  Alps.  They  climb  like  goats,  and 
"  grub  "for  subsistence  on  the.  mountain  sides  and  peaks  where  the 
heavier  cattle  could  not  go.  These  ugly  little  animals  are  also  reckoned 
as  crosses  to  the  Brown  Schwytzer,  but  some  writers  place  their  origin 
as  distinct  and  anterior  to  all  other  bieeds  in  Switzerland.  They  are 
known  as  the  Biindner,  L6viner,  and  Kerens  breed.  They  give  very  rich 
milk  and  weigh  from  400  to  500  pounds. 

There  has  of  late  years  been  introduced  in  the  Engadine  Mountains 
a  new  and  still  smaller  breed  to  take  the  place  of  goats ;  their  weight 
is  from.  250  to  300  pounds. 

CANTONAL  PRIZE  SHOWS, 

The  custom  of  all  cantonal  governments  is  to  offer  yearly  and  half- 
yearly  premiums  for  the  improvement  of  the  cattle  breed  of  this  coun- 
try, and  I  ouly  desire  no\v  to  speak  with  special  reference  to  my  own 
consular  district. 

The  canton  of  St.  Galle  makes  a  yearly  appropriation  of  20,000  francs 
for  the  purpose  of  awarding  premiums  to  the  breeders  of  pure-blooded 
cattle.  The  sum  is  classified  as  follows : 

Francs. 

Bulls 14,000 

Milch  cows 5,000 

Miscellaneous  (handling  cattle) 1,000 

20, 000 

As  a  rule,  the  large  Brown  Schwytzer  carries  off  the  prize.  The  Tog- 
genberg  breed,  however,  is  a  good  show-animal,  and  it  often  becomes  a 
victorious  competitor.  The  canton  is  divided  into  ten  show-districts. 
The  judges  take  into  consideration  and  decide  on  the  following  points: 

SCALE  OF  POINTS  FOR  BULLS. 

]?oints.f 

1.  Head,  fine  and  tapering 

2.  Forehead,  broad - 

3.  Cheek,  small 

4.  Muzzle,  fine  black,  and  ringed  by  light-gray  color 

5.  Nostrils,  wide,  high,  and  open 

6.  Horns,  smooth,  clean,  and  not  too  thick,  with  tapering  black  tips 

7.  Ears,  light-gray,  rather  largo  and  thick,  with  orange-color  within 

8.  Eyes,  clear,  fall,  and  lively 

9.  Throat,  clean,  neck  powerful  but  not  too  heavy 

10.  Chest,  broad  and  deep 

11.  Barrel,  hooped,  broad  and  deep,  but  little  space  between  last  rib  and  hip  . 

12.  Back,  straight  from  withers  to  top  of  hip,  thence  straight  to  sotting  of  tail. 

13.  Tail,  hanging  down  to  hocks. 

14.  Hide,  mellow  and  movable,  but  not  too  loose 

15.  Hide,  covered  with  fine,  soft,  dark-brown  h  air 

16.  Fore-legs,  short  and  straight,  powerful  fore-arms 

17.  Hind-legs,  short,  straight,  and  not  to  cross  in  walking 

*  The  consul  failed  to  supply  the  points  in  detail. 


308  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

Points. 


18.  Hind-quarters,  from  hock  to  the  point  of  rump,  long  and  well- filled. 

19.  Hoofs,  hard,  black,-/  ail  not  too  small .• , 

20.  Growth,  general  appearance,  and  condition 


Perfection 100 

! 

SCALE  OF  POINTS  FOR  COWS. 
Same  as  bulls,  except— 

2.  Fore-head,  narrow,  with  rather  long  face 

6.  Horns,  small,  turncd-up,  with  tapering  black  tips 

9.  Eyes,  full  and  placid 

10.  Neck,  straight,  fine,  and  placed  lightly  on  shoulders 

16.  Fore-arm,  swelling  and  full  above  knee 

21.  Udder,  large  in  form  and  standing  well  out  behind,  but  full  in  line   with 

belly 

22.  Teats,  large  and  squarely  placed,  behind  wide  apart 

23.  Milk-veins,  very  prominent 

24.  Hide,  deep  yellow-orange  color 

Perfection 114 

In  the  heifers  the  scale  of  points  are  the  same  as  cows,  and  they  are 
considered  perfect  at  111  points  before  they  have  dropped  a  calf. 

The  greatest  importance  is  attached  by  the  judges  to  the  beautiful 
form  and  purity  of  blood  in  bulls  for  breeding  purposes,  and  as  most  of 
the  peasants  and  small  farm  .rs  are  unable  to  keep  one  of  the  pure- 
bloods  on  account  of  the  dearness  of  the  animal,  one  is  generally  owned 
and  kept  at  the  cost  of  the  various  districts  or  townships;  and  by  this 
means  the  cows  belonging  to  the  peasants  and  small  farmers  are  served, 
and  the  pure-bloods  are  continually  on  the  increase.  Cattle  shows  or 
fairs  are  considered  as  a  sort  of  public  holiday  by  the  peasants,  and  they 
are  attended  in  large  numbers.  The  exhibition  is  sometimes  free  and 
sometimes  not.  The  premiumed  animals  are  usually  decorated  with 
wreaths  and  garlands,  and  receive  the  dye  or  stamp  of  the  fair  by  hav- 
ing the  same  burned  into  the  horn.  I  have  seen  prized  cattle  with 
their  horns  almost  branded  full  from  the  impressions  made  by  the  dif- 
ferent society  brands. 

Brown  Schwytzer  bulls  generally  serve  cows  at  the  age  of  sixteen  to 
eighteen  months,  but  some  of  the  best  breeders  and  cattlemen  say  this 
is  too  early,  and  that  they  should  not  be  allowed  to  serve  before  two 
years  old,  as  they  are  then  fully  developed  and  give  more  strength  and 
better  constitutions  to  their  offspring. 

OLD  AND  NEW  SYSTEMS  OF  STABLING  CATTLE. 

The  old  Swiss  system  of  feeding  and  caring  for  cattle  is  fast  giving 
way  to  new  developments  which  are  being  inade  in  the  improvement  of 
the  various  breeds,  and  experience  is  teaching  the  people  that  it  is  as 
necessary  to  the  good  health  of  cattle  and  other  animals  that  they  have 
plenty  of  light,  air,  and  commodious  quarters  as  it  is  to  human  beings ; 
and  the  consequence  is  that  whenever  a  new  stable  is  built  or  an  old 
one  is  remodeled,  great  care  is  taken  that  the  stalls  shall  be  so  con- 
structed as  to  give  the  animals  more  room,  better  ventilation,  good 
light,  and  opportunity  for  cleanliness.  During  my  visit  to  many  dairy 
forms  and  peasant  stables  in  quest  of  information  for  this  report,  I  have 
been  absolutely  astounded  to  see  the  sort  of  pUces  cattle  are  kept  in 


SW1TZEKLAND.  iiU'J 

in  some  parts  of  the  canton  of  St.  Galle.  I  visited  one  stable  where 
fifteen  cows  were  kept.  The  stable  proper  was  about  25  feet  long  by  15 
feet  wide,  and  not  to  exceed  0  feet  high  in  ceiling ;  there  was  no  win- 
dow in  the  wall,  except  a  hole,  low  down  to  the  lloor,  about  1G  inches 
in  diameter,  by  which  the  stalls  were  emptied  of  the  manure.  The 
stench  was  simply  unbearable,  and  yet  I  was  told  that  this  was  the 
" old  way"  of  stabling  cattle  in  Switzerland,  and  it  was  thought  by 
many  that  the  cows  produced  more  milk  than  if  they  had  more  air  and 
room.  The  cows  stood  eight  on  each  side,  with  scarcely  room  enough 
for  the  peasant  to  push  himself  through  behind  the  cows  to  clean  the 
stable,  and  so  close  together  that  it  seemed  impossible  for  them  to  lie 
down,  certainly  not  with  comfort.  Advanced  dairymen  and  expe- 
rienced breeders  take  the  common  sense  view  that,  while  heat  greatly 
assists  in  the  milk  secretion,  yet  impure  heat  and  air  cause  disease  in 
cattle,  and  consequently  cause  the  milk  to  sour  and  taint  more  easily. 

HANDLINGS  AI^D   CAKE   OF  CATTLE  IN  THE  ST.  GALLE  DISTRICT. 

In  the  cantons  of  St.  Galle,  Appenzell,  Graubiiuden,  &c,  the  cattle  are 
handled  through  the  year  as  follows : 

Caring  through  the  winter. — Through  the  winter,  from  the  middle  of 
November  until  the  end  of  March  or  April,  the  cattle  are  continually 
kept  in  the  stables,  and  are  fed  almost  entirely  on  dry  hay,  which  has 
been  made  on  the  meadows  which  lie  in  the  valleys,  and  which  are 
mown  two,  three,  and  four  times  a  year,  owing  to  the  quality  of  the  soil 
and  the  manner  of  manuring.  These  meadows  are  drained  by  open 
ditches  when  necessary,  and  are  well  manured  twice  a  year,  and  some- 
times three  times  a  year,  with  stable  and  artificial  dungs.  The  cattle 
are  fed  three  times  a  day.  Milch  cows  are  sometimes  fed  a  small  por- 
tion of  corn-meal  or  turnips  in  addition  to  the  hay.  They  are  watered 
twice  a  day  by  being  led  out  in  the  open  air  to  a  running  stream,  or  to 
the  tank  of  an  artesian  well.  The  young  cattle  do  not  receive  much 
fat  food,  and  are  often  fed  the  whole  winter  through  on  the  wild  grass* 
of  the  high  Alps,  which,  however,  is  said  to  contain  highly  strengthen- 
ing qualities,  consisting  of  large  quantities  of  very  nutritious  and  aro- 
matic herbs,  said  also  to  be  very  good  for  milch  cows. 

The  conditions  under  which  agriculture  is  followed  here  are  so  pecu- 
liar that  it  would  be  hard  to  compare  Switzerland  with  either  England 
or  America. 

The  higher  the  altitude  the  more  herbs  and  the  more  the  grass  is 
filled  with  spices  ;  in  fact,  one  might  say  the  middle  and  higher  alpine 
pastures  of  my  consular  district  consist  almost  entirely  of  herbs,  as 
they  are  situated  from  1,700  to  3,000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 
Only  in  the  lowlands  and  valleys  are  the  cultivated  grasses  grown,  and 
even  about  the  towns  and  villages  in  this  part  of  Switzerland  the 

*  This  grass  grows  on  tho  highest  (vegetation  altitude)  Alps,  and  is  very  difficult 
to  cut  and  take  caro  of.  The  mode  of  harvesting  is  as  follows  :  In  the  haying  season 
the  peasants  go  up  on  the  mountains,  and  begin  mowing  on  the  almost  precipitous 
mountain  side  with  sickles  or  short  scythes.  The  peasants,  before  beginning  their 
day's  work,  however,  make  themselves  fast  by  means  of  ropes  tied  about  their 
bodies,  and  securely  fastened  to  a  stake  driven  in  the  ground  or  tied  to  the  rocks. 
When  the  hay  is  cut  and  ready  for  transport,  a  long  rope  is  made  fast  on  the  mown 
ground  and  continued  down  the  side  of  the  mountain  until  tho  valley  is  reached.  The 
peasants  tie  largo  bundles  of  hay  together,  and  placing  them  on  their  backs  and 
shoulders  begin  their  dangerous  descent  by  taking  hold  of  tho  rope  with  one  hand 
and  using  it  as  a  sort  of  banister  or  " hold-back"  until  tho  perilous  journey  is  at  an 
end.  It  often  happens  that  the  rope  breaks  or  gives  way  under  the  pressure  of  several 
peasants  at  a  time,  and  tho  result  is  breakage  of  limb  or  loss  of  life. 


310  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

grasses  are  about  25  per  cent,  herbs,  and  in  conseqence  of  which  the 
hay  will  always  bring  one-fourth  more  in  the  markets  than  if  grown  in 
the  lowlands. 

To  continue  with  the  stable  treatment,  it  is  correct  to  state  that  the 
cattle  are  thoroughly  curried  and  rubbed  once  and  often  twice  a  day, 
the  trouble  and  time  being  fully  repaid  by  the  loosening  of  the  hide  on 
the  calves  and  those  intended  for  fattening,  as  they  grow  much  faster 
and  accumulate  flesh  more  readily.  In  well-kept  stables  great  care  is 
taken  that  the  stalls  are  kept  dry  and  clean,  the  custom  being  to  rebed 
the  cows  each  day,  with  an  armful  of  either  fresh  straw  or  hay  litter, 
which  also  adds  largely  to  the  stable-dung  supply.  The  stables  are 
usually  cleaned  twice  a  day.  The  manure  is  either  packed  up  in  small 
ricks  some  distance  from  the  barn  or  shoveled  into  sinks,  made  espe- 
cially for  the  purpose,  just  outside  the  stalls,  and  is  either  put  through 
a  distilled  course  or  doctored  with  water  into  a  liquid  state  and  drawn 
off  through  pipes,  or  dipped  with  a  long-bandied  bucket  into  a  very  long 
tank  on  wheels  (somewhat  resembling  a  street-sprinkler)  and  driven  to 
the  fields  with  either  cows  or  oxen  and  thoroughly  distributed  over  the 
ground,  the  cost  and  labor  of  which  is  more  than  doubly  repaid  by  the 
soil  producing  two  or  three  times  the  quantity,  and  a  much  better  qual- 
ity, of  hay  than  the  ordinary  dry-manuring  or  old  turf-sod. 

CATTLE  GRAZING  ON  THE  ALPS. 

On  the  low  Alps. — With  the  spring  begins  different  treatment;  the 
cows  and  fine  breeding  animals  generally  receive  half  dry  and  half 
green  food.  As  soon  as  the  grass  has  grown  a  little,  may  be  in  April 
or  at  the  beginning  of  May,  cattle  are  grazed  on  the  lower  meadows, 
usually  tethered  or  herded  by  old  men,  small  boys,  or  girls.  This 
grazing  period  only  lasts  ten  days  or  a  fortnight,  as  the  grass  must  not 
receive  too  great  a  check,  as  the  result  would  be  a  small  hay  crop  on 
which  the  herd  must  depend  for  its  winter  food.  From  this  low  meadow 
grass  a  move  is  made  on  to  the  first  mountain  step,  which  is  called  the 
"  Maisass,"  or  May  seats.  Sometimes  we  have  the  "Aprilsiiss,"  but 
not  often. 

On  the  Mgli  Alps. — The  "  Maisass  n  runs  from  the  middle  or  end  of  May 
until  the  middle  or  latter  part  of  June,  when  another  move  takes  place, 
as  it  will  not  do  to  imperil  the  hay  crop  which  is  also  expected  from 
these  lands.  By  the  end  of  June  the  cattle  are  up  to  the  high  Alps, 
"  Hochalpe,"  where  they  remain  until  October. 

In  this  part  of  Switzerland  the  'Alps  consist  of  three  stations  or 
table-lands,  the  highest  of  which  can  only  be  grazed  about  three  weeks 
in  the  middle  of  summer.  At  this  station  open  sheds  are  sometimes 
put  up  to  protect  the  cattle  from  sudden  snow-storms  or  cold  rains, 
which  often  occur.  On  the  second  station  a  more  substantial  structure 
is  built  and  is  not  only  used  as  stables  but  as  a  milk  and  dairy  station. 
The  alp  is  usually  owned  by  a  commune,  and  young  cattle  and  milch 
cows  are  taken  on  pasturage  at  so  much  for  the  season  (about  $6  or  $7), 
in  which  case  the  cows  or  heifers  are  sent  directly  to  the  "  Hochalpe  " 
jn  May  or  June,  where  they  remain  until  the  end  of  October,  when  the 
grass  begins  to  get  short  and  the  weather  cold,  and  they  are  brought 
directly  to  the  valleys. 

It  has  been  thought  proper  to  minutely  describe  this  system  of  graz- 
ing in  order  to  explain  the  large  flow  and  the  excellent  quality  of  milk 
obtained  in  the  Alps.  The  results  are,  cows  fed  on  dry  hay  in  winter, 
calves  timed  to  come,  if  possible,  in  February  or  March ;  green  feed 


SWITZERLAND.  311 

in  early  spring  starts  the  milk  secretion ;  later  on,  when  the  good  effects 
of  this  are  on  the  wane,  the  milk  production  gets  a  fresh  stimulus  from 
the  nutritious  grasses  on  the  "Maisass."  Further  on  there  is  another 
change  to  the  fine  short  grass  and  aromatic  herbs  of  the  "  Hochalpe," 
where  the  milk  is  richest  in  flavor  and  contains  the  most  milk-sugar. 
Its  delightful  sweetness  and  flavor  is  unattainable  by  any  other  feeding 
in  the  world,  and  this  is  imparted  to  the  butter  and  cheese,  which, 
when  well  made,  are  in  the  highest  state  of  perfection. 

It  should  be  understood,  however,  that  high  alpine  grazing  is  not 
generally  followed  by  the  larger  farmers  or  dairymen  where  several 
cows  are  kept,  for  in  such  cases  the  herd  is  stabled  and  grazed  in  the 
valleys  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  towns  and  villages  where  the  milk 
is  sold. 

The  high  Alps  are  grazed  by  herds  of  young  cattle  and  cows  owned 
by  the  peasants,  which  are  picked  up  by  ones  and  twos  all  over  the 
neighborhood  of  the  alp.  The  herd,  when  made  up  to  the  number 
which  the  alp  is  by  law  registered  to  graze  for  the  season,  is  driven  up 
to  the  u  Alphiitte,"  "  Sennhiitte,"  or  ehale't,  where  the  cows  are  milked 
and  given  a  little  salt  and  bran  boiled  in  whey  with  a  little  hay,  after 
which  they  are  allowed  to  rest  a  few  hours  in  the  stables.  They  are 
then  taken  out  to  the  pastures,  where  they  remain  until  the  evening, 
when  they  are  driven  to  the  "  hiitte"  to  be  milked  and  sent  out  again 
directly  afterwards.  On  very  hot  days  they  are  kept  in  the  stables 
during  the  hottest  part  of  the  day,  also  in  cold  rainy  weather  they  are 
stabled,  especially  if  there  is  no  woods  on  the  alp. 

DAIRYING  ON  THE  HIGH  ALPS. 

The  "  Sennhiitte  "  is  usually  intended  for  summer  occupancy.  It  is 
a  long  low  and  rudely  constructed  shed,  mainly  built  out  of  roughly 
hewn  pine  logs  with  one  end  mortised  into  the  rocks  of  the  mountain 
side,  and  the  others  laid  across  each  other,  and  fastened  together  with 
lon«'  beech-wood  nails.  The  solid  roof  covering  consists  of  heavy  beams 
of  1.V  feet  in  diameter,  with  boards  1  inch  thick,  12  inches  wide,  and 
about  3  feet  long  laid  on  top.  These  are  fastened  down  by  having 
several  long  poles  stretched  across  them  and  weighted  down  with  a  lot 
of  heavy  stones  weighing  from  50  to  100  pounds  to  keep  the  roof  from 
being  blown  off.  The  site  selected  for  the  stables  must  have  near  it 
plenty  of  fresh  running  water,  necessary  for  the  cattle  and  important 
in  the  care  of  the  milk  and  butter.  At  one  of  these  stations  on  the  high 
Alps  the  milk  and  butter  retain  the  sweetness  for  weeks  without  the 
least  taint.  The  "  Sennhiitte  "  is  residence,  cow-shed,  milk-house,  and 
butter  and  cheese  manufactory  all  together.  The  milk-house,  butter 
and  cheese  department  is  generally  in  one  room.  The  cow-sheds,  where 
the  milking  is  done,  adjoins  and  is  connected  by  a  door  with  the  milk, 
butter,  and  cheese  room,  and  the  room  occupied  by  the  tenders  of  the 
herd.  The  services  of  two  people  are  generally  required  to  attend  to  the 
dairy  properly,  and  are  usually  a  man  and  woman ;  they  are  called  the 
"  senn"  and  "  senneriu."  The  cows  are  milked  twice  a  day,  and  the 
product  of  each  milking  is  weighed  and  placed  to  the  credit  of  the  owner 
of  the  cow  separately,  and  at  the  end  of  the  season  a  balance-sheet  is 
made  out  showing  exactly  what  has  been  the  product  of  the  cow  during 
her  stay  at  the  u  hiitte."  Alpiculture  in  Switzerland  is  of  very  old  stand- 
ing. It  is  said  that  some  alps  have  declined  within  the  last  half  century 
50  per  cent.  Some  have  increased  slightly  of  late  years  on  account  of 
cantonal  and  central  government  premiums  being  offered  for  the  im- 
provement of  alpiculture. 


312  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

PURITY  OF  ST.   GrALLE  MILK. 

The  milk  product  of  my  consular  district  is  important.  Much  of  it  is 
consumed,  both  in  its  natural  state  and  its  various  forms  of  manufact- 
ure ;  but  Swiss  statistics  are  so  very  meager  that  it  is  difficult  to  arrive 
at  any  approximate  amount  of  either  the  product  or  consumption.  As 
a  rule  farmers  and  dairymen  prefer  to  sell  the  milk  in  its  natural  state 
on  the  grounds  ;  it  seems  to  them  that  there  is  more  money  in  it  than 
by  converting  it  into  cheese  and  butter.  The  custom,  therefore,  is  for 
those  in  the  neighborhood  of  towns  and  cities  to  deliver  the  milk 
directly  to  the  consumer  at  so  much  per  quart,  say  3£  cents. 

Chemical  analysis  of  milk  at  St.  Galle. 

[From  the  cantonal  chemical  lahoratory.] 

Per  cent. 

Dry  substance 12.5 

Fat 3.4 

Caseino  and  albumen - 4. 0 

Milk-sujjar 4.35 

Milk-salt 75 

The  local  laws  protect  the  purity  of  the  milk,  and  a  dairyman  or  milk- 
man detected  in  falsifying  milk  or  selling  skim-milk  for  unskimmed-milk 
is  liable  to  both  fine  and  imprisonment. 

MILK-CURE  ESTABLISHMENTS. 

There  is  a  dairy  in  the  suburbs  of  St.  Galle  where  the  cows  are  fed  on 
nothing  but  dry  food  the  year  round.  The  milk  is  recommended  for 
infants  and  aged  people,  is  delivered  by  the  dairyman  from  wagons  at 
7  cents  per  quart,  and  is  claimed  to  be  of  considerable  sanitary  impor- 
tance. There  are  also  several ( ' molkenkuranstalen ?? — milk-cure-estab- 
lishments— in  the  neighborhood  of  St.  Galle,  which  have  existed  for  many 
years,  and  where  people  are  treated  for  various  diseases  entirely  with 
milk. 

EXPORTS  OF   SWISS  CONDENSED  MILK. 

From  the  most  reliable  source  I  can  find,  it  appears  the  amount  of 
condensed  milk  exported  from  Switzerland  during  the  last  eight  years 
was  as  follows : 

Kilograms. 

1875 4,261,750 

1876 5,610,100 

1877'. 5,499,100 

1878 *.                                  ,  6,419,700 

1879 ...  7,813,600 

1880  ...  , 9,229,300 

1881 1                                                                               ....  11,591,400 

1882 11,621,500 

CONDENSED-MILK  MANUFACTURE    IN   SWITZERLAND 

There  are  three  milk-condensing  factories  within  my  consular  district, 
One  at  Gossau,  one  at  Komanshorn,  and  one  at  (Jtweil. 

Each  of  these  factories  condense  milk  according  to  its  own  method, 
but  none  of  them  use  sugar.  The  condensing  apparatus  used  is  similar 
to  that  used  by  condensing  factories  in  the  United  States.  The  milk  is 
condensed  down  to  one-third  of  its  original  volume. 


SWITZERLAND.  313 

The  greatest  possible  care  is  taken  to  use  none  but  good,  clear,  pure 
milk,  produced  from  healthy  cows  if  possible,  pastured  on  high  or  un- 
dulating well-drained  ground,  with  plenty  of  clear,  sweet,  running  water, 
and  every  quart  of  milk  is  tested  before  it  is  put  into  the  boiler. 

These  factories  rent  the  milk  products  of  a  certain  number  of  cows 
the  year  through,  and  require  the  milk  to  bo  delivered  at  the  factory 
twice  a  day,  where  it  is  paid  for  by  weight  at  from  2J  to  3  cents  a  quart, 
the  highest  price  being  paid  in  the  winter  season. 

The  most  scrupulous  cleanliness  is  observed  in  every  detail.  In  the 
first  place  the  peasant,  in  milking  his  cow,  is  requested  to  take  partic- 
ular pains  in  having  the  cow's  udder  and  teats  clean,  and  to  see  that  no 
filth  drops  into  the  milk,  and  the  milking  utensils  are  perfectly  cleansed 
after  each  milking. 

When  the  milk  is  brought  to  the  factory  it  is  strained  through  a  double 
hair-sieve  from  the  scales  into  a  large  tin  or  zinc  tank,  from  whence 
every  detail  of  E-jmipulation  is  guarded  by  cleanliness ;  for  it  is  an  es- 
tablished fact  that  not  only  the  cows  should  be  fed  on  good,  sound, 
healthy  food,  with  kind,  gentle  treatment,  but  that  unless  the  building 
is  well  ventilated,  plenty  of  pure  running  water,  and  an  entire  absence 
of  all  taints  and  ferments,  the  process  of  condensing  milk  which  will 
keep  will  prove  a  sure  failure. 

The  Swiss  Milk  Company  of  Gossan  has  the  reputation  of  being  one 
of  the  best  (without  sugar)  condensing  factories  in  Europe,  as  their 
milk  has  been  tested  in  hospitals,  in  armies  on  the  march,  on  the  sea 
for  weeks  at  a  time,  and  in  the  hot  climes  of  India,  and  has  proved  itself 
in  every  instance  perfectly  condensed,  pure  milk.  The  milk  is  packed 
and  sold  in  pint  and  quart  bottles,  with  the  American  patent  wire  cork- 
ings.  Zinc  and  tin  cans,  holding  from  3  to  15  gallons,  are  also  being 
used  now;  the  advantage,  it  is  claimed,  is  in  the  saving  of  the  cost  of 
bottle,  the  cost  of  packing,  and  weight. 

The  following  analysis  of  the  pure  milk  was  made  by  Dr.  Hehner,  of 
London : 

Per  cent. 

Fat 8.35 

Milk-sugar 11.46 

Albumen 32.85 

Ash  salts 1.82 

This  milk  is  sold  by  wholesale  at  2  francs  per  quart,  and  is  considered 
the  beginning  of  a  most  formidable  rival  to  the  famous  Angelo  Swiss 
Condensing  Milk  Company  at  Cham,  where  sugar  is  largely  used  and 
which  increases  the  cost  and  makes  the  milk  no  better. 

This  Gossan  company  has  only  been  established  a  little  over  one  year, 
and  the  shares  are  at  a  premium  of  20  to  30  per  cent.,  which  goes  to  show 
that  there  must  be  fair  returns  for  the  money  invested  in  it. 

CONDENSED-MILK  FACTORIES  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  condensed  milk  is  so  easily  portable,  the  natural  facilities  are  so 
great,  the  necessity  in  the  near  future  for  an  outlet  to  our  dairy  prod- 
ucts so  important,  that  it  seems  tome  the  country  par  excellence  for  the 
manufacture  of  condensed  milk  should  be  the  United  States.  Every- 
thing is  in  ourfavor — country,  location,  climate,  natural  facilities,  cheap 
grass,  cheap  cows,  inventive  genius,  native  application,  and  all  the  qual- 
ifications necessary  to  a  formidable  competitor.  If  our  factories  will 
make  as  good  condensed  unsweetened  milk  as  is  made  in  Switzerland 
it  is  almost  absolutely  certain  that  we  can  supply  Great  Britain,  her 


314  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY    FARMING. 

colonies,  and  the  South  American  States  with  this,  for  the  future,  im- 
portant staple. 

BUTTEK-MAKINGr  IN  SWITZERLAND. 

The  Brown  Schwytzer  cow  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  butter-making, 
because  of  the  cream-globules  being  unusually  large  in  the  milk,  which 
rise  more  easily  to  the  surface,  and  the  cream  is  churned  more  easily  and 
quicker  into  butter. 

It  is  known  that  the  fatty  substance — butter — is  not  in  solution  in  the 
milk,  but  exists  in  the  tiny  drops,  or  globules.  One  pound  of  milk  con- 
taining 40  per  cent,  of  butter  should  hold  about  40,000,000  globules. 
Every  one  knows  that  when  milk  is  left  to  stand  for  a  length  of  time 
the  cream  rises  to  the  surface  and  is  easily  separated,  leaving  the  "  skim- 
milk"  beneath.  The  largest  of  these  little  globules  is  estimated  (in 
cream)  to  weigh  about  .00000004  milligrams.  These  globules  of  fat 
being  lighter  than  milk,  naturally  seek  the  position  which  their 
special  gravity  entitles.  The  larger  globules  rise  the  quickest  and 
first,  the  medium  ones  next,  and  so  on.  The  average  gravity  of  milk  is 
about  1.030.  The  difference  between  this  and  .985  brings  the  cream 
to  the  surface  under  a  slow  process  ;  the  very  small  globules  never  come 
to  the  surface.  In  different  breeds  of  cattle,  with  different  kinds  of  food 
and  treatment,  the  quantity  and  size  of  the  globules  vary  very  much. 
In  visiting  the  Centrifugal  Butter  Factory  at  Wyl,  in  my  consular  dis- 
trict, I  saw  milk  being  tested  in  a  glass  tube  about  15  inches  long  and 
4  inches  in  diameter ;  after  twenty-four  hours7  standing  the  cream  ap- 
peared to  have  risen  perfectly,  leaving  a  clear  and  blue  line  of  "  skim- 
milk,"  but  on  an  examination  of  the  u  skim-milk"  there  were  found  glob- 
ules still  in  it,  of  the  size  upwards  of  ^ifo  o  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  show- 
ing a  wonderful  richness  of  the  milk  of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  cow. 

As  a  rule,  the  Swiss  dairymen  hold  to  the  old  system  of  setting  milk 
shallow  as  the  best  and  quickest  mode  of  getting  the  cream.  The  ves- 
sel generally  used  is  made  of  wood,  and  is  from  16  to  20  inches  in  cir- 
cumference at  the  top  and  8  to  10  inches  at  the  bottom,  with  sloping 
sides. 

Some  advanced  dairymen,  however,  disagree  with  this,  especially  as 
regards  wood,  and  are  using  the  ordinary  American  milk-pan,  claiming 
that  they  can  be  kept  cleaner  and  are  not  so  easily  impregnated  with 
taints,  &c. 

The  milk  under  ordinary  circumstances  stands  from  twenty-four  to 
forty-eight  hours,  when  it  is  "  skimmed "  and  turned  into  the  churn. 
Sometimes  the  Holstein  barrel  is  used,  and  sometimes  the  old  upright 
piston  churn  with  perforated  holes  at  the  end  of  the  piston ;  but  the 
churn  generally  used  throughout  the  country  is  the  revolving  barrel,  with 
stationary  dashers  on  the  inside,  very  wide  or  large  circumference,  anc1 
revolves  on  its  axis  like  a  grindstone. 

The  churn  is  filled  about  half  full  of  cream,  'at  a  temperature,  more 
frequently  guessed  at  than  tested,  of  near  56°  to  58°  F.,  and  churned 
at  from  30  to  40  revolutions  per  minute,  according  to  the  season.  The 
butter  comes  in  twenty  or  thirty  minutes.  The  churner  should  be  care- 
ful to  listen  to  the  slightest  alteration  in  the  sound,  and  when  detected, 
the  churning  should  at  once  cease,  and  if,  upon  examination,  small  par- 
ticles of  butter,  no  larger  than  a  pin's  head,  are  found,  the  churning  is 
properly  finished.  The  buttermilk  should  be  drawn  off  through  a  hair 
sieve.  After  the  buttermilk  has  been  drawn  off  the  particles  caught  in 
the  sieve  should  be  emptied  back  and  the  churn  filled  about  half  full  o£ 


S  WlTZEJiL  AN  L>.  3 15 

pare  water,  when  after  a  few  revolutions  of  the  churn  the  water  and 
buttermilk  should  again  be  drawn  off,  and  this  process  continued  three 
or  four  times  until  the  water  conies  out  of  the  churn  as  clear  as  when  it 
was  put  in.  This  process  of  washing  and  cleansing  not  only  takes  out 
the  buttermilk  entirely,  but  consolidates  the  butter,  so  that  very  little 
working  is  necessary  to  make  it  pack  properly. 

The  butter  is  made  up  into  small  rolls  of  one  pound  and  one-half  pound 
each,  a-nd  is  sold  to  dealers  at  from  30  to  35  cents  per  pound,  and  to  the 
consumer  at  about  45  cents  per  pound. 

Most  of  the  Swiss  butter  is  made  from  sweet  cream,  and  salt  is  never 
mixed  with  it  unless  specially  so  ordered. 

SWISS  IMPORTS  AND  EXPORTS  OF  BUTTER. 

The  following  table  will  give  an  idea  of  the  approximate  amount  of 
butter  (including  other  fats)  imported  into  and  exported  from  Switzer- 
land during  the  five  years  of  1878  to  1882,  inclusive : 


Years. 

Imports. 

Exports. 

1878  

'Kilograms. 
5  'J]  I  700 

Kilograms. 
445  700 

1870 

5  821  700 

441  700 

]880  .                                                     ..     .          . 

5  05°  CCO 

586  100 

1881  

5.  ISO,  2DO 

83G,  400 

1882 

4  2'3  2CO 

C72,  COO 

The  Swiss  butter  when  properly  made  is  of  a  deep  yellow  color,  fine 
nutty  flavor,  and  delicate  sweet  taste.  The  home  demand  is  about 
equal  to  the  supply,  and  if  any  difference,  hardly  sufficient. 

CENTRIFUGAL  BUTTER-MAKING  IN  SWITZERLAND. 

The  new  system  of  making  butter  by  means  of  centrifugal  force  is 
being  introduced  at  Wyl,  in  my  consular  district.  The  discovery  is 
German,  and  was  first  introduced  at  the  International  Dairy  Show  at 
Hamburg,  in  1877. 

The  complete  separation  of  the  cream  from  the  milk  ns  taken  fresh 
from  the  cows  occupies  about  35  minutes.  The  Centrifugal  Butter 
Company  of  Wyl  claim  that  they  can  not  only  make  better  and  cleaner 
butter  by  centrifugal  force,  but  that  they  can  make  15  per  cent,  more 
butter  from  the  same  amount  of  milk  than  the  old  mode  of  setting  the 
milk  and  churning  in  the  usual  way.  This  butter  is  sold  in  the  market 
at  St.  Gall,  and  gives  general  satisfaction. 

CHEESE-MAKING-  IN  SWITZERLAND. 

Cheese-making  in  Switzerland  is  a  very  old  industry,  but  only  during 
this  century  has  it  developed  so  as  to  take  a  position  of  importance  in 
the  world's  markets.  On  the  high  mountains,  during  the  summer  seasons, 
considerable  attention  has  been  paid  to  the  manufactory  of  cheese  by 
the  peasants  for  many  years,  but  not  until  about  1830  were  associations 
formed  for  this  purpose.  From  that  period,  then,  one  might  say,  Switz- 
erland dates  as  a  cheese-making  country. 

The  best-known  kinds  of  cheese  made  in  this  country  are  as  follows : 
Emmen  thaler,  Gruyere,  Spaleu,  Saanen,  Fromaggio  della  paglia  (in 
the  Valmagia  Tessiuo),  Urseren,  Bellelay,  Vacherin,  Schabzieger,  Bat- 


316  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

telmatt.  The  most  important  of  these  cheeses  is  considered  the  Em- 
menthaler,  which  is  generally  made  of  whole  milk  (Fettkiise),  that  is, 
milk  which  has  not  been  skimmed.  These  are  of  the  largest-sized 
cheese  made  in  Switzerland,  and  weigh  from  75  to  125  pounds;  the 
diameter  is  from  3  to  4J  feet.  In  some  of  the  very  large  factories  cheese 
is  made  in  the  morning  and  in  the  evening  from  fresh  milk.  The 
usual  custom,  however,  is  to  make  but  once  a  day,  in  the  morning,  and 
for  this  purpose  the  evening's  milk  which  has  been  set  is  skimmed  in  the 
morning  and  poured  into  the  large  kettles.  To  this  cream  is  sometimes 
added  the  fresh  morning  milk,  and  the  whole  heated  up  to  about  107° 
to  112°  F.,  during  which  time  it  is  well  stirred  until  no  more  flakes  of 
cream  can  be  seen  on  the  surface.  At  the  highest  temperature  the 
evening  skim-milk  should  be  added  and  the  heating  stopped  at  a  tem- 
perature of  8GQ  to  98°. 

The  rennet  used  is  sometimes  milk-vinegar,  and  sometimes  pieces  of 
calve's  stomachs,  steeped  for  twenty- four  hours  in  whey,  which  is  thor- 
oughly mixed  with  the  milk.  In  thirty- five  or  forty  minutes  the  milk  gets 
thick  and  is  coagulated,  when  it  is  cut  up  into  squares  with  a  wooden  knife, 
after  which  a  shallow  wooden  bowl  with  a  handle  is  used  to  break  the 
curd  evenly  into  pieces  about  the  size  of  small  apples.  At  this  stage  a 
curd-breaker  is  used  to  break  the  curd  into  small  pieces  about  the  size 
of  peas,  when  the  breaking  is  stopped  and  the  curd  allowed  to  settle  for 
ten  or  fifteen  minutes,  after  which  a  fire  is  again  started  under  the  ket- 
tles and  the  whole  stirred  until  a  temperature  of  about  140°  is  reached, 
when  the  kettle  is  taken  from  the  fire  and  the  stirring  continued  until 
the  curd  is  ripe.  The  mode  of  testing  differs  among  the  cheese-makers. 
Some  squeeze  between  their  fingers  and  others  bite  the  curd.  Curd  to 
be  properly  "  ripened"  should  be  stirred  from  an  hour  to  an  hour  and  a 
quarter,  and  a  minute  or  two  before  the  stirring  ceases  ifc  should  be 
stirred  so  rapidly  that  a  sort  of  funnel  to  the  bottom  of  the  kettle  is  formed, 
which  makes  the  curd  settle  more  compactly  and  be  more  easily  taken 
out  with  a  cloth.  The  cake  is  formed  by  the  curd  being  placed  in  a  cloth, 
incased  with  a  hoop  the  width  it  is  desired  that  the  cheese  to  have 
depth. 

Sometimes  regular  cheese  presses  somewhat  like  the  American  press 
is  used,  and  sometimes  a  weight  or  derrick  press ;  about  17  or  18  pounds 
of  pressure  to  1  pound  of  cheese  for  twenty-four  hours  is  employed,  when 
the  cheese  is  taken  out  and  put  in  the  cemented  cellar  to  cure.  During 
the  process  of  curing  the  cheese  is  rubbed  daily  with  salt  for  two  or 
three  weeks,  when  the  cheese  is  taken  from  the  cellar  to  the  cheese  room 
above  ground,  where  the  salt  rubbing  is  resumed  every  other  day  fora 
few  months,  when  the  salting  is  less  frequent.  For  large  cheese  often  a 
year  and  sometimes  a  longer  period  is  required  before  it  is  ripe  or  may 
be  used.  From  4J  to  5J  per  cent,  of  salt  is  required. 

Good  Emmenthaler  cheese,  when  ripe,  should  be  a  compact  mass  with- 
out cracks,  but  when  tested  on  the  inside  should  contain  round  small 
holes  about  the  size  of  peas,  which  must  contain  a  little  liquid.  Theso 
holes  should  be  evenly  distributed  all  through  the  cheese.  The  cheese 
ought  to  melt  on  the  tongue  without  leaving  any  small  crumbs  and 
have  an  agreeable,  sweet  taste. 

Magerlcase,  or  skim-milk  cheese,  is  generally  made  in  the  winter  when 
little  milk  is  at  disposal,  and  the  process  is  similar  to  the  Emmenthaler, 
except  the  milk  is  skimmed  and  more  rapidly  cooked  without  the  but- 
ter substance,  which  makes  it  harder  and  tougher. 

Gruyere  cheese  is  also  made  very  like  the  Emmenthaler  except  the 
rennet  is  added  at  a  lower  temperature,  say  8(»°  F. 


SWITZERLAND.  317 

Battelmatt  cheese  is  made  entirely  for  borne  consumption,  as  it  will 
not  bear  transport.  It  is  made  from  fresh  milk  directly  coagulated 
with  rennet  and  boiled  for  forty-five  or  fifty  minutes,  stirred  for  one- 
quarter  of  an  hour  and  then  hung  up  in  a  cloth  for  the  whey  to  drip  off, 
when  it  is  put  into  wooden  bowls  and  salted  daily  until  consumed. 

Vaclierin  cheese  is  a  kind  of  cream  cheese,  and  is  only  made  in  the 
winter,  but  as  a  smearv  cheese  is  considerably  used  and  is  very  palat- 
able, 

iSaancn  is  a  skim-milk  cheese  and  is  so  hard  that  it  is  easily  grated ; 
it  is  used  much  in  soups  throughout  Switzerland  5  it  is  made  in  cakes 
of  15  to  25  pounds. 

Urseren  cheese  is  made  mostly  in  the  canton  Uri  5  the  cakes  weigh 
from  50  to  GO  pounds.  It  is  also  made  of  skim-milk. 

ScJidbsieger,  or  Krauter  cheese. — This  is  a  very  important  manufacture 
in  this  and  the  southern  parts  of  Switzerland  5  the  number  of  pounds 
made  yearly  is  said  to  be  several  millions. 

The  process  of  making  is  as  follows : 

The  milk  is  thoroughly  skimmed  after  sitting  as  long  as  possible, 
when  it  is  poured  into  a  kettle  and  heated  up  to  a  boiling  point,  and 
about  20  per  cent,  of  cold  fresh  buttermilk  is  added  ;  after  which  the 
heating  is  continued,  but  not  at  such  high  pressure  as  before,  and  sour 
whey  is  added  and  the  kettle  is  taken  from  the  fire. 

After  it  has  coagulated,  the  curd  is  put  in  large,  strong  hemp  sacks 
or  boxes,  the  bottom  of  which  is  perforated  with  holes,  and  pressed 
with  large  stone  weights  or  beam  pressure. 

The  zicgcr  then  undergoes  a  kind  of  fermentation  at  about  62°  F., 
which  lasts  a  month  and  a  half  or  two  months.  If  the  temperature  is 
too  high  the  zieger  is  apt  to  be  readily  decomposed,  while  if  the  tem- 
perature is  too  low  it  will  get  blue  and  tough.  When  the  sieger  has 
been  put  through  a  proper  fermentation,  it  is  put  in  a  special  mill  and 
thoroughly  ground,  during  which  process  5  per  cent,  of  salt  and  2J  per 
cent,  of  dried  Mcli-lotus  vcerulea,  Lam.,  is  added.  This  clover  gives  the 
cheese  its  bluish  color  and  peculiar  taste.  The  next  process  is  to  stamp 
the  curd  into  small  wooden  forms,  lined  with  clotffi,  which  are  about  5 
or  G  inches  high  and  3  or  4  in  diameter.  The  cheese  "cures"  for  about 
one  year,  but  is  frequently  used  after  being  kept  in  cool,  dry  rooms 
for  six  months.  The  small  forms  are  emptied  by  scraping  with  a  knife. 
When  the  cheese  is  to  be  eaten  it  is  first  grated  to  a  fine  powder,  and 
either  used  alone  on  bread  or  mixed  with  butter.  Skim-milk  cheese  is 
sold  in  the  markets  here  at  6  cents,  and  the  cream  cheese  at  about  20 
cents  per  pound.  Cheese  factories  are  supplied  with  niilk  in  a  similar 
manner  to  the  condensed-milk  companies,  and  pay  about  the  same  prices. 
From  good,  rich  milk  8  to  11  per  cent,  of  crenm  cheese  can  be  reckoned 
to  the  weight  of  the  milk.  The  whey  of  milk  is  still  boiled  down  into 
sugar  in  this  part  of  Switzerland. 

The  whey  is  boiled  until  only  a  brown  sirup  remains  in  the  kettle, 
which  is  poured  in  ilat  wooden  dishes  and  left  to  stand  for  twenty-four 
hours,  when  it  becomes  like  crystallized  yellowish  sand.  This  is  washed 
in  cold  water  and  sold  for  medicinal  purposes. 

EXPORTS  OF  SWISS  CHEESE. 

The  amount  of  cheese  exported  from  Switzerland  during  the  last  ten 
years  is  estimated  as  follows : 

Kilograms. 
1854 5,356,150 

I860..  7,339,450 


318  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Kilograms. 

1866 12,556,300 

1B72 19,271,600 

1877 17,799,000 

1878 19,579,900 

1879 '21,017,400 

1880 '21,718,900 

1881  24,039,700 

1882 26,025,700 

To  every  condensed-milk  factory,  butter  and  cheese  factory,  should 
be  attached  or  connected  pig-sties,  as  the  waste  mills:  is  large.  This 
waste  at  some  factories  I  have  visited  is  sold  at  1  centime  per  quart  or 
liter. 

PERCENTAGE.  OF  CATTLE  BREEDS  IN  SWITZERLAND. 

The  total  number  of  cattle  in  Switzerland  is  reckoned  at  1,100,000 
head. 

Out  of  this  number  three-fifths  are  said  to  be  of  the  Spotted  breed 
and  two-fifths  of  the  Brown.  In  my  consular  district  the  Brown 
Schwytzer  stands  at  about  95  per  cent,  and  the  Spotted  breed  at  about 
5  per  cent. 

The  total  number  of  milch  cows  is  estimated  to  be  about  552,427 
head. 

If  these  cows  averaged  10  quarts  per  day,  the  daily  yield  would  be 
5,524,270  quarts,  or  1,657,281,000  quarts  in  the  year,  counting  300  milk- 
ing days. 

Mr.  Charles  Kuhn,  of  Degersheirn,  has  had  the  kindness  to  furnish  me 
with  a  copy  of  his  dairy  book  for  the  last  year,  which  gives  a  very  good 
insight  as  to  the  mode  of  conducting  dairies  here,  and  is  herewith  in- 
closed, marked  A. 

SWISS  CATTLE  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

From  the  general  observations  made  during  my  residence  in  Switzer- 
land, I  am  convinced  that  the  Brown  Schwytzer  is  a  very  desirable  ani 
mal  to  import  to  the  United  States,  and  would  do  better  with  proper 
handling  there  than  here. 

In  searching  for  information  on  this  point  I  applied  to  Col.  G. 
Biirgi,  of  Arth,  in  the  canton  of  Schwytz,  a  very  large  pure-blooded 
breeder  and  exporter,  and  he  informs  me  that  the  first  shipment  of  the 
Brown  Schwytzer  breed  to  the  United  States  was  made  in  the  month 
of  September,  J  869,  from  his  stables.  Quoting  his  words,  he  says: 

I  sold  to  Mr.  Henry  M.  Clark,  of  Belmont,  Mass.,  7  heifers  and  1  bull,  first  quality. 
Soon  after  their  arrival  in  the  United  States  they  were  resold  to  Mr.  D.  G.  Ald- 
rich,  of  Worcester,  Mass.,  and  Mr.  David  Hall,  of  Providence,  K.  I.  To  judge  from 
the  result,  it  appears  the  herd  fell  into  the  right  hands,  for  Mr.  Aldrich  must  bo  n 
practical  man  in  breeding  blooded  animals  and  believes  in  seeing  that  the  line  is  kept 
pure.  Ihe  very  excellent  quality  of  these  animals,  in  milk,  flesh,  form,  color,  and 
working  qualities,  were  so  marked  that  they  soon  became  known,  and  the  result  was 
that  a  number  of  intelligent  farmers  formed  themselves  into  a  society  for  importing 
and  raising  these  pure-blooded  animals,  and  a  herd-book  was  begun.  I  am  informed 
that  from  this  8  head  imported  in  1869  the  number  had  increased  in  1881  to  169  head. 
Without  going  further  into  details  about  this  tirst  shipment,  what  other  remarks  1 
may  make  on  this  subject  are  based  on  the  reports  of  this  society,  as  made  public 
(Metcalf,  publisher,  Worcester,  Mass.),  referring  to  the  Brown  Schwytzer  race.  This 
very  interesting  publication  contains  the  statutes  of  the  society,  gives  the  pedigree, 
name,  and  hue  of  breed,  and  from  whence  originally  imported,  &c.  I  observe  that 
the  climate,  grass,  feeding,  &c.,  in  the  United  States  agree  with  thj  imported  ani- 
mal amazingly,  and  that  the  change  of  soil  and  handling  is  entirely  to  their  good  j 


SWITZERLAND. 


319 


that  ibey  are  equally  as  healthy,  give  more  milk,  and  become  larger  in  stature  than 
among  their  native  mountains. 

Milk  trials  of  these  animals  have  been  made  in  the  United  States  which  for  quan- 
tity has  never  been  equaled  in  this  country.  A  cow  known  as  Genevena  gave  in  seven 
successive  days  196  quarts,  weighing  415  pounds,  or  averaging  28  quarts  daily. 

Since  the  first  shipment  in  1869  the  export  of  the  Brown  Schwytzer  breed  to  the 
United  States  has  been  about  as  follows  : 

1882:  9  heifers  (two  years  old)  and  1  bull  (two  and  one-half  years  old)  shipped  to 
Messrs.  Scott  &  Harris,  Massachusetts. 

1883 :  10  heifers,  same  firm. 

1883,  July  20  :  5  heifers  (two  years  old)  and  1  bull  (fifteen  months)  shipped  to  Will- 
iam Thoch,  New  York. 

1883,  August  5  :  1  three-year-old  cow,  10  heifers  (one  and  one-half  years  old),  and  1 
bull  (eight  months  old)  shipped  to  Messrs.  Eider  &  Eldrege,  Middle  Falls. 

For  importation  the  Americans  prefer  the  young  cattle  that  have  been  raised  in 
the  mountains,  as  they  are  hardier,  stand  the' voyage  better,  and  become  acclimated 
sooner  than  the  older  animal. 

In  considering  the  results  of  the  importation  of  Swiss  cattle  to  the  United  States, 
the  committee  of  the  Boston  Exposition  in  1875  reported  as  follows: 

"This  herd  of  European  cattle,  with  their  offspring, is  from  the  farm  of  Mr.  D.  G. 
Aldrich,  and  present  an  important  exhibition  of  themselves ;  they  surpass  the  Devon, 
Jersey  or  Guernsey  for  butter  and  milk  product.77 

A  sample  of  butter  from  these  cows  was  furnished  by  Mrs.  Aldrich  and  compared 
with  that  of  the  Guernsey  cows  by  Professor  Motley,  and  was  pronounced  in  every 
respect  equal  to  the  Guernsey  butter,  and  this  is  rated  as  the  best  butter  in  the  world. 
At  a  butter  show  in  the  city  of  New  York,  Mrs.  Aldrich  competed  with  butter  made 
from  the  Brown  Schwytzer,  and,  although  competing  with  the  Jersey  and  Guernsey,  re- 
ceived the  prize.  That  the  American  handling,  soil,  and  climate  have  a  great  and  good 
effect  on  the  Swiss  cattle  there  can  be  no  doubt,  for  the  same  committee  says :  "  Bulls 
and  heifers  weigh  at  tho  age  of  two  years  from  1,000  to  1,400  pounds." 

Mr.  Eldrege,  the  gentleman  who  received  the  last  shipment  from  Switzerland,  wrote 
to  Colonel  Burgi  as  follows  :  "As  you  know,  it  is  another  new  breed  in  America,  and 
it  is  pronounced  by  all  who  have  seen  any  of  them  the  best  for  meat,  milk,  and  butter 
of  any  other  known  breed,  and  there  is  a  largo  and  growing  demand  for  them." 

The  best  route  of  shipment  is  via  Antwerp.  The  freight  from  this 
locality  via  Antwerp  over  the  sea,  with  good  pressed  hay  and  meal,  with 
attention,  is:  Heifers,  from  200  to  250  francs;  cows,  350  to  400  francs. 
The  purchase  of  heifers  (or  bulls)  a  year  and  a  half  old  is  recom- 
mended, as  they  are  not  only  cheaper  to  send,  but  stand  the  voyage 
much  better. 

EMOKY  P.  BEAUCHAMP, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

St.  Galle,  October  20,  1885. 


A  milJc-looJc  of  Charles  Kulin,  Degorslieim,  from  July,  1882,  to  June,  1833.* 
[Explanations :  M.,  morning ;  E.,  evening ;  J  liter =1  pint ;  1  liter  =  1  quart. 


Name  of  the  cow. 

July  15. 

July  30. 

Aug.  15. 

Aug.  30. 

Sept.  15. 

Sept.  30. 

Oct.  15. 

Oct.  30. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

.Bruno                               • 

9 
11 

6 
9 
10 

9 
10 
6 
9 
10 

9 
12 

8 
10 
9 

9 
12 
7 
10 
9 

8 
10 
7 
9 
9 

8 
10 
7 
9 
9 

7 
9 

7 
9 
8 

7 
10 
8 
9 
9 

4 
8 
8 
10 
9 

3 
7 
9 
9 
9 

4 

8 
9 
10 
9 

2 
6 
8 
9 

8 

Bethli     

5 
8 
9 
9 

5 
8 
8 
8 

Daihsli  

6 
8 
7 
8 
10 
6 

5 

6 
7 
8 
10 
5 

Wolfli          .             

Bristhopf  

14 

7 

13 
6 

Klupp        

*The  cows  were  tested  on  tlio  15th  and  the  50th  of  each  month  in  halftliters. 


320  CATTLE    AisD    DAIRY    FARMING. 

A  milk-book  of  Charles  Kulm,  Degorshcim,  <fc. — Continued. 
[Explanations:  M.,  morning;  E.,  evening;  i  literal  pint;  1  liter  =1  quart.] 


Name  of  cow. 

Nov.  15 

Nov.  30. 

Doc.  15. 

Dec.  30. 

Jan.  15. 

Jan.  30. 

Feb.  15 

Feb.  30. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

Brime  „  

19 

20 
G 

8 

7 
8 

1G 
17 
5 

7 
5 

7 

17 

16 
6 
8 
6 
10 

15 
14 
4 
6 
4 
9 

20 
19 
6 

7 
7 
9 

17 
16 

4 
6 
5 
7 

17 
16 
6 
7 
5 
9 
9 
12 
5 

15 
14 
4 
5 
3 
7 
8 
10 
3 

16 
16 
6 
7 
4 

8 
y 
12 

6 

14 
14 
5 
G 
2 
7 
8 
11 
4 

Bethli       

Daibsli  

6 

7 
7 
8 

5 
0 
6 

7 

6 

7 
7 
9 

5 
6 
6 

8 

G 
8 
7 

8 

5 
7 
6 

7 

"Wolfli 

Porber  ....................... 

Hirschii 

Klotzli  

Jiristliopf 

10 
G 

ft 

5 

12 

C 

11 
G 

12 
6 

11 
5 

12 
G 

10 
5 

12 
G 

10 
4 

12 
G 

10 

4 

Klupp  .. 

Name  of  cow. 

'Mar.  15. 

Mar.  30. 

Apr.  15. 

Apr.  30. 

Ma 

M. 

y!5. 
E. 

May  30. 

Juno  15 

June  30. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

Jli. 

M. 

E. 

M. 

E. 

Br'line         ..  ......  r........ 

16 
15 
6 

7 

14 
13 
4 
6 

15 

15 
6 

7 

13 
13 

4 
G 

14 

15 
7 

8 

12 
13 
G 
6 

13 
15 

G 

7 

11 

13 
4 
6 

14 

<; 

7 

11 
12 
4 
5 

12 
15 
6 
8 
17 
G 
9 
11 
5 
14 

10 
13 
4 
G 
15 
4 

9 
3 

12 

12 
14 
6 
7 
16 
4 
8 
10 
4 
14 
9 

10 
12 

4 
5 
14 
2 

G 

8 
2 
12 

8 

10 
12 
5 
G 
16 
3 
9 
10 
4 
12 
10 

7 
18 
8 
0 
14 
4 
4 
2 
3 
10 
8 

Bethli 

Daihsli 

AVolfli  ,  

Hirscbli    

8 
9 
12 
4 
15 

6 
8 
10 
8 
13 

8 
8 
12 
5 
15 

G 

7 
10 
4 
13 

8 
9 
12 
4 
IS 

6 
8 
10 
3 
13 

7 
8 
12 
4 
14 

6 
6 
10 
2 
12 

7 
9 
12 
4 
14 

5 

7 
10 
2 
12 

Klotzli 

Bristhopf          

J  ungierli  

1 

I 

Name  of  cow. 

Number 
of  trial 
days. 

Total 

quantity 
of  milk 
during 
trial  days. 

Average 
quantity 
of  milk 

for  each 
milking 

day  dur- 
ing tho 
year. 

Total 
number 
>f  milking 
days  dur- 
ing the 
year. 

Daily  av- 
erage of 
each  cow's 
•  milk  dur- 
ing the 
year  —  305 
days. 

Total 
product 
of  each 
cow's 
milk  dur- 
ing tho 
current 
year. 

19 
20 
24 

24 
1!) 
17 
10 
18 
18 
8 

a 

Half 
liters. 
454 
48!) 
284 
3.33 
315 
232 
159 
389 
1G3 
210 
35 

Lifers. 
11.617 
12.425 
5.  917 
7.  354 
8.3 
6.82 
7.95 
10.8 
4.528 
13.  125 
8.75 

Milk 
days. 
290 
305 
3C5 
.305 
290 
257 
150 
273 
273 
120 
30 

Liters. 
OI- 
lO.  4 
5  9 
7.'  3 
G.  G 
6.8 
8.0 
10.8 
4.5 
13.1 
8.7 

Liters. 
3,  465 
3  805 
2,160 
2,684 
2,407 
1,753 
1,102 
2,  948 
1,236 
1,575 
2G2 

Bcthli  

Daibsli  

Wolfli         

Porber  ..................  .....  .... 

Hirschii 

Klotzli  

Klnpp     .......... 

J  ungierli  ....... 

SWITZEKLAND.  321 

CATTLE  IN  THE  COIISULAB  DISTEICT  OF  GENEVA. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  ADAMS. 

I  have  collected  the.  following  information  in  reply  to  the  cattle 
circular  of  July  18,  and  the  memoranda  added  August  25. 

Cattle  census. — According  to  the  Swiss  cattle  census  taken  in  1876,  the 
number  of  cattle  in  this  district  was  193,404,  distributed  as  follows : 

Geneva 6,949 

Tessin 44,188 

Valais 65,024 

Vaud 77,243 

From  1866  to  1876  there  was  an  increase  for  all  Switzerland  from  a 
total  of  008,291  head  to  1,035,850  head,  which  is  supposed  to  have  been 
maintained  at  the  same  rate  since,  owing  to  the  rise  in  values  and  en- 
couragement given  by  the  local  governments. 

Breeds. — The  different  breeds  are  so  intermingled  that  it  is  impossible 
to  give  the  percentage  of  each,  or  the  percentage  bred  for  the  dairv  and 
the  butcher.  Tessin  alone  has  a  distinct  and  uniform  breed,  known  by 
its  brown  and  even  color. 

ME  AT- CATTLE  IMPORTS. 

In  the  four  cantons  named,  constituting  this  district,  cattle  are  only 
fattened  for  the  butcher  when  they  cease  to  serve  for  the  dairy  and  re- 
production. The  supply  being  unequal  to  the  consumption,  there  is  no 
exportation  save  of  choice  individuals  pure  bred,  but  a  large  importa- 
tion of  cows  and  oxen  from  Baden  and  Austria  and  of  beeves  for  the 
butcher  from  Italy.  Nothing  comes  from  the  United  States,  whether 
cattle  or  products  of  the  dairy. 

American  butter  and  cheese  for  Switzerland. — A  suggestion  made  in 
one  of  my  previous  reports  that  American  butter  and  cheese  would 
find  a  ready  sale  here  if  put  upon  the  market  at  certain  prices  was  rather 
ridiculed  by  the  Swiss  press,  but  was  certainly  true,  and*perhaps  is 
worth  renewing,  for  Swiss  butter  is  not  of  the  best  or  the  cheapest,  and 
the  cheese  eaten  by  the  people  is  bad. 

American  preserved  meats. — Preserved  American  meats  are  already 
sold  here  in  large  quantities.  Live  cattle  and  fresh  meat  must  wait  for 
better  communications  with  the  seaboard.  The  tunneling  of  the  Alps, 
and  the  new  lines  of  through  traffic  north  and  south  and  east  and  west, 
are  likely  to  make  of  Switzerland  a  great  international  entrepot  and 
to  change  all  the  conditions  of  the  market, 

RESULTS  OF  BREEDING  FROM  IMPORTED  CATTLE. 

The  cattle  imported  into  Switzerland  are  never  bred  pure,  and  soon 
disappear  as  distinct  breeds  on  crossing  with  the  native  breeds.  These 
are  of  uncertain  origin,  and  perhaps  of  high  antiquity  5  at  any  rate 
must  be  treated  as  practically  indigenous.  No  comparison  can  be  made 
with  their  character  and  condition  in  their  native  countries,  nor  can  one 
say  what  has  been  the  effect  on  the  breed  by  domestication  here.  Nor 
have  I  any  information  as  to  the  extent  and  effect  of  their  introduction 
into  other  countries.  Whether  they  would  produce  in  the  United  States 
H.  Ex.  51 21 


iJL'JJ  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

offspring  superior  to  the  production  here  can  only  be  known  upon  trial, 
but  their  superiority  is  so  largely  due  to  the  excellence  of  the  Swiss 
grasses  that  it  may  be  doubted.  The  result  suggested  might  very  likely 
be  realized  in  the  later  generations,  after  the  breed  had  been  thoroughly 
acclimated.  It  is  certainly  not  worth  while  to  import  any  of  the  small 
mountain  breeds,  such  as  are  found  around  the  Gothard,  in  the  cantons 
of  Tessin,  the  Orisons,  the  Valais,  and  Uri,  as  the  very  peculiar  condi- 
tions of  soil  and  climate  under  which  they  thrive  at  home  could  hardly 
be  found  east  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  if  there,  and  they  would  not 
bear  so  long  a  journey  well. 

CHARACTERISTICS  OF  SWISS  CATTLE. 

The  original  of  all  the  Swiss  breeds  is  perhaps  the  race  found  in  the 
primitive  cantons.  Two  races  are  generally  spoken  of,  the  Spotted  and 
the  Brown,  of  even  color,  which  again  are  subdivided  into  varieties 
according  to  origin,  habitat,  color,  &c.  I  have  added  in  a  table  all  the 
details  available  of  four  breeds  which  have  been  selected  as  the  fittest 
for  domestication  in  the  United  States.  It  is  to  be  said  of  them  all  that 
they  have  reached  their  excellence  through  the  abundance  and  richness 
of  the  food-supply,  and  careful  breeding  and  management,  which  have 
been  carried  to  great  perfection  in  the  regions  where  they  are  found — 
the  cantons  of  Bern,  Zug,  Lucerne,  Schw^tz,  &c. 

The  foregoing  information  is  drawn  principally  from  a  report  made 
to  me  by  Mr.  K.  Schatzmann,  director  of  the  Station  Laitiere  Suisse, 
at  Lausanne,  the  author  of  several  publications  and  probably  the  most 
competent  authority  in  my  district  on  the  subject.  The  annexed  table 
is  entirely  filled  up  by  Mr.  Schatzmann. 

LYELL  T.  ADAMS, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Geneva,  November  21, 1884. 


Statistics  of  Swiss  cattle  suitable  for  introduction  into  the  United  States. 


Annual 

Milk 

Milk 

Uame  of  breed. 

average 
pounds  of 

to  pounds 
of 

to  pounds 
'    of 

Cantons  where  found. 

milk. 

butter. 

cheese. 

Pounds. 

Pounds. 

Pounds. 

5  100 

28  to  30 

11  to  12 

Freiburg  .  .....     .  . 

5  100 

5  840 

Bern 

Schwytz....  ........   , 

5  840 

30  to  32 

12  to  13 

[Size  in  aentimeters  at  maturity.] 


Co 

w. 

Bull 

Ox. 

Height 

Girth. 

Height. 

Girth. 

Height. 

Gfcth. 

160  to  162 

210 

160  to  165 

240 

180  to  190 

250 

160  to  162 

210  to  216 

160  to  1G5 

240 

180  to  190 

260 

140  to  150 

205  to  210 

165 

202 

170  to  180 

230 

136 

200  to  210 

130 

200 

140 

230 

MALTA. 

Statistics  of  Swiss-cattle,  $c. — Continued. 


323 


Name  of  breed. 

Live  weight. 

Age 
at 
matu- 
rity. 

Weight  of 
meat  at  matu- 
rity in  per 
cent,  of  liv- 
ing weight. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Simmenthal       *...... 

Pounds. 
1,000  to  2,  000 
1,000  to  2,  000 
900  to  1,200 
800  to  1,500 

Pounds. 
2,  400  to  3,  000 
2,  400  to  3,  000 
1,200  to  1,500 
1,000  to  1,500 

Pounds. 
3,  000  to  3,  200 
8,  400  to  3,  500 
1,400  to  1,600 
1,200  to  1,000 

Years. 
4 
4 
34 
34 

57  to  60 
57  to  60 
57  to  60 
57  to  60 

Fratiiren    ..... 

Schwytz 

Name  of  breed. 

Color. 

Description. 

Simmenthal  

<Eed  or  tawny  (fauve)  

<  Great  height,  strong  workers,  good 
\    milkers,  easily  fattened. 

Medium    height,    excellent    milkers, 
easily  fattened. 
Same  as  preceding. 

£  white-.. 
Black  or  i 
Tawny,  w 

Brown,  w 

vhite    

Fratigen    .... 

hite 

Schwytz  . 

trite  and  black. 

HOUSING,   FEEDING,   AND  BBEEDING  IN  THE  GENEVA  DISTRICT. 

Methods  of  housing. — In  the  plains  cattle  are  stabled  the  whole  year.  In  the  mount- 
ains they  are  pastured  in  summer;  fed  on  hay  and  aftermath  in  winter. 

Feeding. — Natural  fodder  (hay,  aftermath,  grass).  In  winter  in  plains  'artificial 
fodder  is  added,  bran,  flour,  distillery-refuse,  malt,  &c. 

Breeding. — Bulls  are  used  from  the  age  of  one  and  a  half  years.  Cows  bear  the  first 
calf  when  two  or  three  years  old. 

SOIL,   SUBSTRATUM,   AND  GRASSES. 

Soil. — Interminable  variety.  In  Jura,  calcareous.  In  the  Alps,  granitic.  In  plains, 
alluvial  and  diluvial;  all  varieties  mingled. 

Substratum.— Similar  composition  to  preceding. 

Cultivated  grasses. — Natural  grasses  of  very  great  variety  in  mountain  pastures.  In 
the  plains  cultivated  grasses,  timothy,  clover,  rye-grass,  lucerne,  esparcette,  &c. 


CATTLE  IN  MALTA. 

No  cattle  are  raised  in  Malta.  The  cattle  that  reach  here  for  con- 
sumption are  brought  from  Barbary,  Tunis,  and  other  neighboring  coun- 
tries. They  are  mainly  classed  as  bullocks,  are  brought  here  alive,  their 
fattening  completed,  and  slaughtered  as  needed  by  consumers. 

JOHN  WORTHINGTOK, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Malta,  October  12, 1885. 


324  CATTLE    AND    D Alii Y    FAK 


ITALY. 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRYING  IN  LOMBARDY. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  CHAIN,  OF  MILAN. 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  the  circular  of  the 
Department  dated  July  18,  1883,  which,  however,  did  not  reach  this 
consulate  until  the  1st  instant. 

. 

SWISS  CATTLE  IN  LOMBARDY. 

There  exist  in  Loinbardy  only  milch  cows  of  Swiss  breeds.  They  are 
yearly  imported  in  large  numbers  from  Switzerland,  to  supply  the  place 
of  those  which  have  become  unprofitable  for  the  dairy.  In  the  irri- 
gated districts  grass  is  cut  during  eight  months  of  the  year,  and  on  the 
winter  meadows  (marcitorio)  during  ten  mouths.  This  fresh  grass,  sup- 
plemented with  oil  cake,  meal,  &c.,  is  fed  to  the  cattle,  so  as  to  produce 
the  largest  quantity  of  milk.  Such  a  nourishment  continued  through 
so  many  months  in  stables,  and  in  a  mild  climate,  naturally  soon  ex- 
hausts the  milking  properties  of  cows,  and  necessitates  the  annual  sub- 
stitution of  about  15  per  cent,  of  the  herd.  The  loss  by  this  is  more 
than  met  by  the  large  product  of  milk,  which  averages  yearly  from 
3,000  to  4,000  liters  per  head.  Dairymen  having  100  or  more  head 
ordinarily  find  it  to  their  interest  to  send  the  calves,  when  a  few  days 
old,  to  the  slaughter-house.  This  state  of  things  having  existed  for  a 
long  time,  it  is  evident  that  scarcely  a  trace  remains  of  original  Lombard 
breeds.  The  so-called  Bergamasche  and  Brescian  races  are  only  a 
reproduction  of  Swiss  stock. 

The  foregoing  applies  to  the  large  stationary  dairies  of  the  Lombar- 
dian  plain.  In  the  irrigated  district,  bordering  the  river  Po,  there  are 
large  dairy  herds,  which  are  driven  in  summer  to  the  rich  pastures  of  the 
Alps,  and  which  remain  there  until  autumn,  when  they  are  taken  back 
to  the  plain.  There  are  also  small  dairymen  in  the  mountains,  who 
drive  their  cattle  to  the  plain  in  winter.  In  these  migrations  are  also 
included  oxen,  being  raised  for  labor  or  beef  5  and  the  proprietors  both 
of  the  plain  and  mountain  districts  supply  themselves  with  dairy  cows 
of  Swiss  breeds  and  oxen  from,  the  Tyrol.  In  the  Alpine  districts  there 
are  small  races  which  take  the  name  of  the  valleys  in  which  they  are 
raised,  but  they  are  a  Swiss  stock.  Large  breeds  taken  from,  the  plain 
to  high  mountain  districts,  and  there  propagated,  undergo  in  a  few  gen- 
erations a  decided  change,  from  the  effect  of  a  different  climate,  soil,  and 
diet.  They  become  smaller,  more  hardy,  and  nimble  of  foot,  and  other- 
wise adapted  to  the  requirements  of  their  habitat.  Lombard  dairy- 
men import  their  cows  principally  from  the  canton  Schwytz,  but  some 
are  brought  from  the  cantons  of  Unterwalden,  Zug,  Appenzell,  St. 
Gallen,  and  Glarus.  They  are  preferred  in  the  order  named,  and  if 
breeds  of  these  stocks  are  required  they  should  be  brought  from  those 
cantons. 

The  Tyrolese  oxen  above  mentioned  are  first  brought  while  young 
into  the  province  of  Brescia,  and  thence  scattered  over  the  plain  under 
the  name  of  Brescian  oxen.  They  are  short  horned,  of  a  grayish-white 
color,  have. the  characteristics  of  the  Podolico  race.  They  are  tall, 


o 
*     O 


S  o 

2  > 

;=  z 

2  H 

3  i 

H 

m  CO 

2  O 


OD 


ITALY.  325 

heavy,  white  skinned,  and  easy  to  fatten.  If  breeders  of  this  race  are 
desired  they  should  be  obtained  from  Merano  and  Lana,  in  the  Tyrol. 
Some  oxen  are  brought  from  Emilia  to  the  provinces  of  Cremona  and 
Mantua,  but  those  of  the  Tyrol  are  preferred. 

Although  there  are  no  indigenous  Lombard  breeds,  I  would  strongly 
recommend  the  breed  of  the  canton  Schwytz  as  well  deserving  the  at- 
tention of  American  dairymen  and  stock-raisers,  if  the  same  has  not 
already  been  tried  in  our  country.  Dairymen  and  stock  experts  here 
represent  it  as  decidedly  superior  for  the  dairy  to  other  Swiss  breeds, 
and  it  is  even  claimed  by  many  to  be  the  best  in  Europe.  The  opin- 
ion of  these  persons  should  have  some  weight,  when  it  is  considered 
that  the  dairy  industry  is  probably  as  strong  in  Lombardy  as  in  any 
part  of  Europe,  and  that  the  butter  and  cheese  product  is  so  largo 
that  farmers  find  it  to  their  interest  to  renovate  their  herds  exclusively 
by  importations  from  abroad.  The  magnitude  of  the  industry  may  be 
better  understood  when  I  state  that  in  the  province  of  Milan,  which  con- 
tains 1,155  square  miles,  there  are  132,928  cows,  according  to  the  last 
statistics.  The  butter  known  as  Milan  butter  is  largely  exported  and  is 
highly  prized  in  London,  Paris,  and  other  capitals.  The  several  kinds 
of  cheese  known  as  Gorgouzola,  Brintz,  Gruyera,  Formaggini,  and  Par- 
migiano  are  well-known  in  the  great  markets  of  the  world. 

The  Schwytz  cow  is  ordinarily  of  a  dun  color,  weighs  from  900  to  1,100 
pounds,  has  short  horns,  which  are  black  and  white,  and  costs  in  the  can- 
ton about  $130.  She  is  a  hearty  feeder,  and,  if  well  nourished,  gives  milk 
a  longer  term  of  years  than  any  other  cow  known  here.  A  peculiarity  of 
the  Schwytz  is  the  long,  light,  cofiee- colored  hair  growing  from  the  in- 
terior of  the  ear,  which  is  a  conspicuous  object  in  contrast  with  the  dark 
coat  of  the  head  and  neck. 

Great  attention  has  been  given  to  the  milking  breeds  of  other  coun- 
tries by  the  Lombards,  and  their  comparative  merits  are  well  understood ; 
but  at  an  important  exposition  of  cattle  held  at  Lodi  in  September  last, 
the  committee  in  charge  of  the  subject  unanimously  recommended  dairy- 
men to  replenish  their  stock  from  Switzerland,  and  the  Schwytz  breed 
received  the  first  mention. 

The  form  of  the  Schwytz  does  not  present  the  smooth  and  delicate  out- 
line of  the  English  breeds.  It  is  thick  and  ox-like.  I  inclose  a  cut  of 
one  exhibited  at  the  Milan  National  Exposition  of  1881,  and  which 
secured  the  gold  medal.  The  best  route  for  the  transportation  of 
Schwytz  breeders  to  the  United  States  would  be  by  the  St.  Gothard 
Kailway  to  Genoa,  and  thence  by  steamer  to  New  York.  The  railway 
expense  is  about  $5  per  head. 

CATTLE  BREEDS  OF  NORTHERN  ITALY. 

There  are  in  other  parts  of  Northern  Italy  types  of  cattle  which  are 
native  or  acclimated  from  time  immemorial.  Such  is  the  breed  of  Pied- 
mont, known  as  the  Piedmontese  or  Garmagnolo  race.  This  is  a  dis- 
tinct type,  tall  of  stature,  short  horned,  grayish-red  color,  and  with  a 
conformation,  especially  the  cranium,  closely  resembling  the  Garonne 
breed  of  France.  It  is  essentially  a  stock  for  beef  or  farm  work,  and  is 
fattened  and  largely  exported  to  France,  where,  as  beef,  it  is  rated  as 
inferior  only  to  the  beef  of  the  best  French  stock.  Cattle  of  this  breed, 
or  of  sn braces  closely  allied  to  it,  are  found  in  every  part  of  Piedmont. 

Emilia,  in  its  northern  part,  about  Piacenza,  has  a  specific  type  of 
oxen  called  Bardigiana,  red  or  mottled  with  white,  and  long-horned. 


326  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

In  the  plain  toward  Parma  is  the  race  known  as  Reggiana  or  Par- 
mense.  This  has  been  bred  with  much  care,  by  selections  from  the  best, 
and  is  considered  excellent  for  mixed  uses,  i.  e.<  for  labor,  fattening, 
and  milk.  In  form,  fineness,  stature,  and  weight  these  animals  are  re- 
garded as  the  type  of  the  large  races  bred  on  the  central  plains  of 
Europe ;  but  the  uniformity  of  the  red  coat,  without  marks,  and  the 
thick,  short-limbed  body  are  considered  proof  of  the  acclimation  of  this 
breed  in  Emilia  in  remote  ages.  Zoologists  assert  that  it  is  descended 
from  the  ancient  bue  Italico,  South  of  the  Taro,  and  extending  beyond 
Bologna,  are  cattle  known  as  the  Pugliese  breed. 

PORTRAITS  OF  ITALIAN  PRIZE   CATTLE. 

I  inclose  cuts  of  animals  exhibited  at  the  national  exposition  held 
at  Milan  in  1831,  as  follows  : 

Bull  Jupiter,  belonging  to  the  agricultural  committee  of  Savigliano,  of  Piedmontese 
breed. 

Bull  Pertinace,  owned  by  Mr.  Manara,  of  Asti,  of  Piedmont  breed. 

Bull  Adams  II,  one  and  a  half  years  old,  of  the  Chianina  (Tuscany)  breed  for  work.* 

Young  bull  Napoli,  exhibited  by  the  agricultural  committee  of  Leiidinara,  and  of 
Pugliese  breed,  for  farm  work. 

Bull  Ghinassi,  three  and  one-half  years  old,  Pugliese  breed,  for  work  oxen. 

Bull  Tigro,  of  Freiburg- Fruilana  labor  breed,  two  years  and  nine  months  old. 

Bull  Maestoso,  of  Mantua  labor  breed,  exhibited  by  the  Agricultural  Society  of 
Mantua,  and  awarded  medal. 

Cow  Mantova,  of  the  Freiburg  (Swiss)  breed,  eleven  years  old,  from  tho  estate  of  S. 
Rossore,  belonging  to  King  Umberto. 

Heifer  Anvjersa,  Holland  breed,  exhibited  by  the  Agricultural  School  of  Brescia,  and 
awarded  gold  medal. 

Fausta,  five  years  old,  Pugliese  breed,  exhibited  by  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Len- 
dinara  (Rovigo). 

Cows  Minerva  and  Cole,  of  Brittany  breed,  awarded  silver  medal. 

DUNHAM  J.  CHAIN, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Milan,  November  30, 1883. 


BUFFALO  CATTLE  OF  TERRA  DI  LAVORO. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  HATTGHWOUT,  OF  NAPLES. 

I  have  the  honor  to  submit  to  the  Department  of  State  a  report  upon 
the  breed  of  cattle  within  this  jurisdiction,  in  compliance  with  the  re- 
quests contained  in  the  circular  of  the  Department  of  State,  dated  July 
18,  1883. 

The  area  of  country  included  within  the  limits  of  this  consular  juris- 
diction furnishes  a  race  of  cattle  peculiar  in  its  characteristics.  By 
far  the  largest  and  most  important  portion  thereof  is  domiciled  on  tho 
plains  lying  to  the  north  and  east  of  the  province  of  Naples,  the  so-called 
"  Terra  di  Lavoro,"  once  called  the  "  Campagna."  This  tract  of  land  is 
a  vast  plain  of  trachytic  tufa,  overlying  beds  of  clay  deposits,  which,  in 
turn,  rest  upon  a  substratum  of  limestone.  It  is  about  100  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  sea,  and  enjoys  the  same  degree  of  .mildness  of  climate 
as  the  near  province  of  Naples,  that  is  to  say,  the  mean  tempera; uro  in 

*  Transferred  to  report  by  Consul  Crosbey,  of  Florence,  concerning  this  particular 
breed. 


r» 


ITALY.  327 

summer  is  from  18°  to  23°  Re*aumur,  and  in  winter  about  8°  Re'aunmr, 
rarely  falling  to  3°  Re*aurnur.  The  tufa  referred  to  varies  in  thickness 
from  100  to  300  meters  in  depth,  is  rich  in  potash  feldspar,  and  is  cov- 
ered with  a  luxuriant  growth  of  wild  grass. 

Over  this  tract  of  land  cattle  of  the  buffalo  race,  the  origin  of  which 
is  unknown,  roam  in  a  semi-wild  state. .  This  race  has  never,  to  any 
extent,  been  crossed  in  breeding,  bub  retains  many  peculiarities  that 
render  it  exceedingly  hard  to  manage.  In  color  the  cattle  are  black, 
or  reddish  black  j  are  shaped  somewhat  like  an  ordinary  cow,  not  so 
evenly,  however,  with  short,  round  necks,  large  and  curving  horns,  and 
with  the  rump  somewhat  larger  and  heavier  than  that  of  the  ordinary 
cow. 

The  "  Terra  di  Lavoro"  contains  about  12,000  of  these  cattle,  bred 
mainly  for  the  purpose  of  yielding  milk  for  cheese-making.  During  the 
period  of  their  milk-giving,  and  after  they  become  useless  for  this  pur- 
pose they  are  used  before  the  plow  or  for  other  purposes  which  have  in 
view  the  development  of  the  soil.  When  they  become  unfit  for  such 
purposes  they  are  turned  over  to  the  butcher.  This  occurs  when  they 
are  about  fourteen  years  old.  Some  are  in  the  first  instance  fed  for 
the  butcher,  and  in  such  cases  the  meat  is  of  the  first  quality,  but  in 
the  majority  of  cases  the  meat  of  cattle  whose  lives  are  passed  in  the 
manner  in  which  these  buffaloes  live  is  neither  very  tender  nor  very 
desirable. 

The  cheeses  made  from  the  milk  of  the  buffalo  cows  are  called  u  lat- 
ticini.7'  They  are  close  and  heavy  in  consistency ;  are  sweet,  and  are 
consumed  entirely  within  the  limits  of  their  production,  being  in  no 
wise  adapted  for  exportation. 

There  has  been  during  the  past  ten  years  a  slight  increase  in  the 
stock  of  cattle  referred  to,  an  increase  due  in  a  measure  to  the  increase 
in  the  demand  for  cheese  and  meat.  In  the  section  of  the  country  to- 
wards Rome  there  has  been  a  diminution,  due  to  the  cultivation  of  the 
soil,  by  reason  of  which  the  cattle  have  lost  their  natural  food  and  have 
decreased  in  numbers,  as,  I  am  informed,  multiplication  depends  very 
much  upon  the  character  of  the  food  they  receive. 

As  a  race  the  buffaloes  have  never  been  closely  studied.  Within  the 
memory  of  the  present  proprietors  of  the  cattle  lands  no  improvement 
has  been  made  in  the  breed  of  the  animals,  and  none  have  been  ex- 
ported, except  a  few  to  Sicily  yearly.  The  question  of  exportation  is 
deemed  to  be  full  of  difficulties,  and  the  proprietors  do  not  deem  it  of 
advantage  to  them  to  attempt  to  send  these  cattle  abroad.  They  are 
at  times  exceedingly  wild,  and  consequently  difficult  to  manage.  In 
spite  of  this  they  are  productive,  and  the  result  is  remunerative.  In 
some  cases  there  have  been  crossings  with  a  breed  of  Swiss  cows  from 
the  neighborhood  of  Bern,  Switzerland,  which  are  best  adapted  to  the 
furnishing  of  milk  for  butter-making.  These  cattle  are  found  in  the 
Piano  of  Salerno,  and  are,  I  learn,  exported  yearly  in  large  numbers. 

The  buffaloes  arrive  at  maturity  when  about  three  years  of  age ;  then 
the  size  of  the  buffalo  bull  i&  about  1  meter  and  80  centimeters ;  that  of 
the  ox  the  same,  and  that  of  the  cow  about  1  meter  and  GO  centimeters. 
The  weights  thereof  at  maturity  are  about  as  follows :  Bull,  2,000 
pounds ;  ox,  2,000  pounds  ;  cow,  from  1,600  to  1,700  pounds.  The  yield 
of  milk  averages  about  14  liters  a  day  from  each  cow,  when  the  buffalo 
calf  does  not  draw  upon  the  mother  for  its  supply  of  nourishment. 
About  15  liters  of  milk  make  3  kilos  of  cheese,  containing  all  the  butter 
from  the  milk  and  being  very  rich  and  exceedingly  heavy.  The  buffa- 
loes require  little  care,  and  in  fact  they  get  but  little.  They  are  never 


328  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

fastened,  and  are  not  housed  except  in  very  severe  weather,  and  in  such 
event  the  protection  is  such  as  only  a  heavy  shed  will  afford.  Their  food 
is  the  \rild  grass  of  the  "  Campagna"  or  "  Terra  di  Lavoro,"  together  with 
a  little  hay  at  times,  which  is  thrown  upon  the  bushes  that  it  may  not 
be  trampled  under  foot.  It  is  thought  best  that  the  calving  should  oc- 
cur in  the  autumn  rather  than  in  spring,  as  the  supply  of  milk  is  needed 
for  the  winter  cheeses,  during  which  latter  season  the  manufacture  and 
consumption  thereof  are  the  largest. 

The  method  of  packing  the  cheeses  for  consumption  is  exceedingly 
simple.  They  are  worked  into  forms  of  convenient  size,  generally  weigh- 
ing from  2  to  3  pounds,  and  then  packed  in  leaves  and  placed  in  strong 
wicker  baskets. 

The  buffalo  bull  and  cow  when  young  are  estimated  to  be  worth  about 
600  francs  j  when  full  grown,  from  800  to  900  francs. 

EXPORT  TO  THE  UNITED   STATES. 

In  case  of  their  shipment  to  the  United  States,  the  best  method  would 
be  by  direct  steamers  to  New  York,  a  voyage  of  about  twenty  days. 
I  am  informed  by  the  management  of  one  of  the  steamship  lines  be- 
tween Naples  and  New  York  that  the  cost  of  shipment  would  be  $75 
per  head,  which  would  include  boxing,  watering,  and  feeding  during 
the  voyage. 

I  submit  herewith  a  sketch  of  the  buffalo  bull,  drawn  from  life.  It 
gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  animal,  although  not  in  itself  a  work  of  art.  It 
is  the  best  that  could  be  done  under  the  circumstances. 

FKANK  G.  HAUGHWOUT, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Naples,  February  20,  1884. 


Special  statistics  concerning  Italian  luffalo  cattle. 
[Name  of  breed :  Buffalo.] 


Animals. 

Size  at 
maturity. 

Live  -weight. 

Cow... 

Xelers. 
1  60 

Pound*. 
1  COO  to  1  700 

Bnll... 

1  80 

2,000 

Ox  

1.80 

2,000 

Average  quantity  of  milk :  About  14  liters  per  clay.     A  liter  equals  about  2J  pounds. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  clicese :  Fifteen  liters  of  milk  make  3  kilograms,  or  Cf  pounds,  ol 
cheese. 

Name  of  country:  Terra  di  Lavoro,  Italy. 

Age  at  maturity :  Three  years. 

Weight  of  meat  at  maturity  :  As  near  as  can  bo  ascertained,  the  meat  when  fully  pre- 
pared by  butcher  weighs  450  to  500  pounds. 

Color  :  Black  or  reddish,  black. 

Description :  Shaped  like  ordinary  cow ;  short,  round  neck ;  largo  and  curving 
horns  ;  rump  larger  than  ordinary  cow. 

PRODUCT. — Labor:  Farm  work  to  slight  extent.  Meat:  Not  generally  good  for 
meat  market.  Milk:  Used  for  cheese  making.  Cheese:  Entire  amount  of  milk  used 
to  make  heavy,  rich,  white  cheese. 

Altitude:  About  100  feet. 

Temperature  in  summer  :  18°  to  20°  R6aumur ;  in  winter,  8°  Rdaumur. 

Substratum :  Clay  resting  on  limestone  bed. 


ITALY. 


329 


Methods  of  housing  :  No  special  method  used.  In  case  of  severe  weather  the  cattle 
have  the  protection  of  a  heavy  shed. 

Feeding  :  WUd  grass  of  Campagna.    Occasionally  a  little  hay. 

Breeding  :  Hfc  special  method  used.    Cows  calve  in  autumn. 

Handling  products  :  Cheese  packed  in  leaves  and  in  wicker  baskets  and  consumed 
at  home. 


CATTLE  III  PIEDMONT. 

RE  POET  BY  VICE-CONSUL  DEZEYK,  OF  TURIN. 

Detailed  description  of  such  domesticated  animals  as  have  proved  by  long  experience  to  have 
been  profitable  in  Piedmont,  Italy,  with  information  about  the  topography  of  the  country 
and  the  composition  of  the  soil. 


® 

03 

11 

1      - 

P3 

£3     £} 

Size  at  maturity. 

Live  weight. 

&*•  *-( 

£1,43 

"? 

Name  of  breed. 

pj 

11 

•2,a 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

-3S, 

a 

3 

Lbs. 

Lbs. 

Lhg. 

r>  ooo 

15 
15 

| 

Large  
do  

Large  
do  

Larjre  
...do  

1,200 
1,  000 

1,800 
1,300 

1,700 
1,100 

Mixed  breeds  

r>,  ooo 

Mountain  breed  

8,000 

12 

Medium  .. 

Medium  .. 

Medium  .. 

1,000 

1,300 

1,100 

Plemontcse. — Five  years  at  maturity ;  weight  of  meat,  CO  per  cent,  of  live  weight; 
color,  light  gray;  meat,  good;  milk,  middling;  cheese,  good. 

Mixed  breeds. — Five  years  at  maturity;  weight  of  meat,  60  per  cent,  of  live  weight  j 
color,  light  gray ;  meat,  milk,  and  cheese,  good. 

Mountain  breed.— Five  years  at  maturity;  weight  of  meat,  GO  per  cent,  of  live  weight; 
color,  brown,  black,  and  white  spotted ;  meat,  milk,  and  cheese,  good. 

Topography. 


Altitnrln 

5 

temperature 

Mean. 

Summer. 

"Winter. 

Piedmont  200  meters  iibove  tlio  level  of  the  sea 

°C. 
14  to  15 

°C. 
25  to  32 

°C. 
10  to  12 

Mountains,  300  to  1  000  meters  above  the  level  of  the  sea 

10  to  12 

20  to  25 

15  to  10 

SOIL. — Alluvial :  Piedmont.  Loam  :  Collina.  Clay  :  Monferrato,  branch  of  Appe- 
nines.  Sandy,  $c. :  Valley  of  Po. 

SUBSTRATUM. — Limestone:  The  Piedmont  hills  in  general,  and  those  of  Turin  in  par- 
ticular. Sandstone:  The  district  of  Asti.  Clay:  Monferrato.  Gravel,  ^-c.  :  Tlio  valleys 
ofPo,  Tanaro,  Dora,&c.  Granite :  The  mountains.  Cultivated  grasses:  Timothy,  none; 
clover,  abundant ;  rye-grass,  $c.,  moderate. 

Methods  of  housing :  Stabling  in  winter  and  pasturing  in  summer.  Feeding:  Hay 
and  grass  alternately.  Breeding :  Domestic.  Handling  products :  Heat,  butter,  anil 
cheese. 

The  "Pianura"  pure  breed  would  thrive  well  in  corresponding  states 
or  latitudes;  purchase  price  averages  800  francs  for  bulls  j  GOO  francs 
lor  oxen ;  500  francs  for  cows. 

The  best  route  for  exportation  is  per  railroad  to  Genoa  and  per 
steamship  to  New  York. 

The  stock  of  cattle  is  steadily  increasing  in  Piedmont  on  account  of 
its  profitableness.  The  number  bred  by  far  surpasses  the  home  de- 


330 


CATTLE   AND   DAIRY    FARMING. 


mand,  and  the  surplus  is  exported  mostly  to  France  for  butchering  pur- 
poses. During  the  first  eleven  months  of  1883  there  were  exported  from 
Italy  to  Franco  96,000  head  oi*  cattle  (between  calves  and  beef),  and  a 
like  amount  of  sheep  (between  lamb  and  mutton).  With  the  exception 
of  some  corned-beef  in  cans,  no  meat  or  dairy  product  of  any  kind  is 
imported  into  this  district  from  the  United  States. 

The  last  census  of  1882  gave  the  following  figures  of  the  number  of 
cattle  and  of  their  adaptability  in  the  four  districts  of  Piedmont,  re- 
spectively : 


Animals. 

Adaptedness. 

Xumber. 

District  of  Cuneo: 
Calves  (male)  under  one  and  one-half  years........  

29  213 

26  287 

Bulli                                            

For  work 

20  09° 

Oxen                           ......    .................................. 

do 

S3  004 

For  work  and  milk 

199  441 

District  of  Turin  : 
Calves  (male)  under  one  and  one-half  years  

2(5  144 

38  903 

Bulls                                                  

All  work  and  meat 

1  515 

Oxen      ..;  

do    . 

22  686 

do  

198  783 

District  of  Alexandria  : 

23  230 

Calves  (female)  under  one  and  one-half  years 

12  163 

Bulls  ."  

All  work  and  meat 

>061 

do 

61  157 

Cows                                        .  . 

do 

50  264 

District  of  Kavarra  : 
Calves  (male),  under  one  and  one-half  years  ......  ............... 

11  452 

Calves  (female)  under  one  and  one-half  years 

22  592 

Bulls  

One-third  work 

1  033 

Oxen 

do 

23  745 

Cows  (two-thirds  milk)  „  

do  

129  070 

Total  numher  of  cattle  in  Piedmont  in  ISS^ 

861  035 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Turin,  January  10, 1884. 


A.  J.  DEZEYK, 

Vice- Consul. 


CATTLE  IN  TUSCANY. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  WELSH,  OF  FLORENCE. 

In  reply  to  the  circular  issued  by  the  Department  of  State,  dated 
July  18, 1883, 1  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  report : 

The  breeds  of  horned  cattle  raised  in  Tuscany  are  five  in  number,  and 
named  respectively  Chianina,  Maremmana,  Tiberina,  Svizzera,  and 
Montaniha. 

The  Chianma,  Maremmana,  and  Tiberina  are  descendants  of  the  breed 
called  Podolico,  or  Pugliese,  from  Puglia,  in  the  south  of  Italy.  The  Sviz- 
zera, or  Swiss  breed,  originated  at  Lugano,  Switzerland,  and  the  last,  or 
Montanina,  are  hardy  mountainous  cattle  of  a  nondescript  origin. 

THE  CHIANINA  BREED. 

The  breed  called  the  Chianina,  or  the  Val  di  Chiana,  is  the  most  valued 
in  Tuscany  for  all  purposes,  whether  for  producing  milk,  beef,  or  pow- 
ers of  traction.  A  report  on  this  breed  was  forwarded  to  the  Depart- 


ITALY.  -  331 

inent  of  State  by  my  predecessor,  Mr.  J.  Schuyler  Crosby,  on  the  20th 
May,  1882,  and  as  far  as  I  can  learn  was  in  all  points  correct  except  as 
regards  prices,  which  were  too  high.* 

This,  the  Yal  di  Chiana,  I  think  the  only  breed  in  Tuscany  worthy  to 
be  exported  to  the  United  States,  unless  perhaps  a  trial  might  be  made 
with  the  Montanina,  a  very  hardy  class  of  cattle,  and  producing  good 
milk  on  what  they  can  pick  up  in  the  mountains ;  they  are  also  good 
draft  and  fair  beef  cattle. 

CATTLE  OF  THE  YAL  DI  CHIANA. 

The  following  is  the  substance  of  a  letter  received  from  the  agent  of 
Count  Frassineto,  who  is  the  most  important  breeder  and  dealer  in  the 
Yal  di  Chiana  breed  of  cattle,  and  whose  statements  are  entirely  to  be 
depended  upon.  The  color  of  the  Chianina  cattle  is  white,  with  fine 
horns,  and  eyes  pecurliarly  bright  and  expressive.  They  are,  indeed, 
very  handsome. 

A  new-born  calf  weighs  about  44  to  55  pounds,  and  at  one  year 
will  weigh  about  1,102  pounds  and  measure  in  height  about  5  feet.  The 
estimated  price  is  $115  to  $135.t 

A  bull  two  years  old,  measuring  5  feet  6  inches  and  weighing  1,763 
pounds,  would  be  about  the  average.  He  might  bring  $193.t  A  bull 
three  years  old  measures  6  feet  3  inches  and  weighs  about  2,204  pounds. 

A  calf  after  castration  and  arriving  at  the  age  of  one  year  may  weigh 
from  881  to  1,102  pounds,  and  measure  5  feet,  being  valued  at  $77.20. 
At  two  years  this  calf  would  measure  about  5  feet  6  inches,  weigh  1,543 
pounds,  and  be  valued  at  from  $96  to  $116.  At  three  years  it  is  con- 
sidered an  ox,  would  measure  about  6  feet  3  inches,  weigh  about  2,204 
pounds,  and  be  worth  from  $135  to  $154. 

Heifers  at  one  year  weigh  882  pounds,  and  measure  4  feet  7  inches. 
At  two  years  1,323  pounds,  and  measure  5  feet  3  inches.  At  three  years 
a  heifer  becomes  a  cow;  size  about  5  feet  3  inches  to  5  feet  7  inches 5 
weight  about  1,543  pounds.  The  prices  of  cows  are  the  same  as  for 
oxen. 

Of  this  breed,  both  male  and  female  arrive  at  the  age  of  puberty 
when  twenty  mouths  to  two  years  old.  The  male  serves  well  up  to  four 
years  of  age,  the  female  to  ten  years  and  over.  Oxen  are  yoked  when 
about  twenty  months  and  generally  endure  six  or  seven  years  of  work. 

Feeding  and  housing. — In  this  district  cattle  are  generally  kept  in 
stalls.  They  are  fed  as  follows:  Winter,  a  mash  of  tarrtips  and  hay 
with  bean  or  corn  flour  thrown  in,  if  the  cattle  are  to  be  fattened. 
While  working  they  are  fed  with  hay  alone  with  one  portion  of  oats  per 
day. 

Balls  are  higher  fed ;  hay,  turnips,  and  oats  being  freely  given.  To 
cows  besides  the  usual  food  given  to  oxen,  rye  flour  and  flour  of  peas 
or  beans  are  added.  These  latter  increase  the  milk  secretion. 

During  spring,  summer,  and  autumn  grasses  are  freely  given;  care, 
however,  is  to  be  taken  not  to  mix  the  fresh  food  with  the  dried. 

In  regard  to  feeding,  6.C1  pounds  of  fodder  are  needed  daily  for  each 
220  pounds  of  live  weight.  This  for  cattle  being  fattened  and  stall-fed. 
To  fatten  thoroughly,  il  pounds  must  be  fed  daily  for  every  220  pounds. 
For  cattle  at  work  or  serving,  8  pounds  for  every  220  pounds  per  day. 

*  This  report  is  published  immediately  following  Consul  Welsh's  report, 
t  These  prices,  the  consul  says,  are  much  overestimated. 


332  CATTLE  AND  DAIKY  PAKM1NO. 

TRANSPORT  FEED. 

While  being  transported,  whether  on  land  or  sea,  oats,  beans,  and,  if 
possible,  turnips  should  be  used,  good  hay  being  always  provided. 
The  straw  needed  for  each  head  is  from  5.51  to  G.G1  pounds  daily. 

COST   OF  FODDER. 

The  cost  of  fodder  is  about  as  follows:  Beans,  $3.08  per  2.84  bushels; 
oats,  $1.93  per  2.84  bushels;  lupines,  $.1.93  per  2.84  bushels;  beans, 
$3.47  per  220.40  pounds. 

I  am  assured  by  Count  Frassineto  that  where  turnips  are  plenty  this 
breed  of  cattle  is  sure  to  thrive. 

CHIANINA  BULLS. 

The  description  of  well-made  bulls  should  be  as  follows :  Back  straight, 
neck  thick,  head  small,  horn  white,  finely  shaped,  with  black  tips;  ears 
quite  long,  but  well  shaped ;  legs  large  and  strong,  but  disposed  to  be 
knock-kneed ;  tail  short ;  the  entire  color  is  white,  with  exception  of 
muzzle  and  tip  of  tail  black ;  the  tongue  dark ;  the  barrel  or  body  is 
well  rounded  and  long,  the  chest  full,  hoofs  not  too  straight.  In  general 
appearance  the  female  differs  little  from  the  bull. 

MAREMMANA  CATTLE. 

The  Maremmana  breed,  generally  of  a  gray  and  white  speckled  color, 
are  to  be  found  on  the  salt  marshy  plains  of  Yolterra  and  on  the  clay 
ground  in  the  vicinity  of  Sienna.  They  are  a  strong  working  cattle, 
but  would  not,  I  think,  be  apt  to  improve  any  breed  in  the  United 
States,  being  in  themselves  almost  mongrel.  The  Tiberina  differ  but 
little  from  the  Maremmana. 

SVIZZERA  CATTLE. 

The  Svizzera  breed,  from  Lugano,  Switzerland,  is  only  found  in  the 
vicinity  of  Pisa.  The  cattle  are  generally  black  in  color  and  produce 
good  beef,  but  are  only  medium  workers  or  milk  producers.  Their  im- 
portation can  hardly  be  recommended. 

TRANSPORTATION  OF  ITALIAN  CATTLE   TO   THE  UNITED  STATES. 

With  regard  to  transportation  to  the  United  States,  an  actual  or 
trustworthy  estimate  cannot  be  given  unless  the  number  of  cattle  is 
known.  From  Arezzo  to  the  port  of  Leghorn  the  railroads  transport 
ten  head  of  cattle  for  about  $15. 

From  Leghorn  to  New  York  the  Anchor  Line  charges  about  8100  for 
mere  transportation  and  the  necessary  water  for  one  animal,  and  $75 
each  for  any  number  not  under  ten.  In  case  a  number  of  cattle  are  to 
be  shipped  a  portion  of  the  "'tween  decks"  or,  in  summer  time,  the  spar 
deck  of  a  vessel,  should  be  chartered,  and  the  stalls  or  boxes  built  by 
the  shipper. 

I  would  always  advise  that  the  space  necessary  should  be  hired  or 
chartered,  whether  on  steamer  or  sailing  vessel,  and  then  the  requisite 
stalls  or  boxes  put  up  and  furnished  by  the  shipper,  who  should  see 
that  the  attendants  were  men  understanding  the  treatment  of  cattle  at 
sea. 


ITALY. 


333 


PURCHASING  ITALIAN  CATTLE  FOE  EXPORT. 

ISTo  considerable  quantity  of  cattle  should  be  purchased  unless  through 
an  agent  thoroughly  understanding — that  is,  practically  knowing — cat- 
tle ;  an  agent  who  can  judge  as  to  value,  strength  of  constitution,  &c., 
and  one  whose  sympathies  have  not  been  engaged  by  the  seller.  The 
prices  given  here  are  always  first  prices  5  the  last  price  can  only  be  fixed 
upon  by  bargaining,  and  that  should  be  done  by  a  practical  cattle 
dealer. 

I  append  forms  answering  as  near  as  possible  the  requirements  of  the 
circular. 

WM.  L.  WELSH, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Florence,  November  G,  1884. 


Statement  showing  the  cattle  exports  from  Italy. 
[Nearly  all  to  France.] 


To  foreign  countries. 

Eul^s 
and  oxen. 

Cows. 

Heifers 
and  calves. 

1*82    

62  630 

19  396 

27  937 

IdfU 

30  877 

U  039 

24  028 

Increase 

31  762 

8  357 

3  909 

Special  statistics  concerning  Tuscan  cattle. 
[Name  of  breed:  CMacina.] 


Animals. 

Size  at 
maturity. 

Weight  on 
the  hoof. 

A#e  at 
maturity. 

Dead 
•weight. 

Cow                                       

Meters. 
1.70 

Pounds. 
1  543 

3 

Pounds. 
700 

Bull  .                     -  

1.90 

2,201 

3 

1,500 

Ox  

1.90 

2,204 

3 

1,200 

Annual  average  gallons  of  milk :  450  gallons  yearly  production  of  a  cow  after  second 
delivery. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  butter:  5  gallons  milk  to  2£  pounds  of  butter. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  cheese :  Sheep  cheese  alone  is  produced  in  Tuscany. 

Name  of  country :  Val  di  Chiana,  Florence,  Pisa. 

Color :  Silver- white  mantle. 

Description:  Neck  very  thick,  abundant  mantle,  small  head,  short  aud  black  muz- 
zle, thin  horns,  long  ears  and  flesh  colored  inside,  strong  and  largo  legs,  short  tail, 
black  tip. 

Origin  of  breed :  Modification  of  the  Pudolico  type  or  Pugliese,  from  Puglia  (South 
Italy. 

Labor :  Enduring  great  amount  of  labor.  In  a  farm  managed  by  four  men  and  two 
women  (which  is  considered  to  be  the  average)  oxen  are  put  in  the  yoke  172  days  in 
the  year,  viz:  53  winter,  13  spring,  44  summer,  62  autumn. 

Meat :  Making  excellent  beef,  this  kind  of  cattle  being  easily  fattened. 

Milk :  A  good  cow  will  give  about  1.50  gallons  of  milk  a  day ;  5  gallons  of  this  milk 
will  make  2.2046  pounds  butter. 

Cheese :  In  tho  vicinity  of  Florence  about  three-fifths  of  the  cattle  are  bred  for  the 
dairy  nml  butcher. 

Topography  of  Tuscany :  Tuscany  may  bo  divided  in  four  agrarian  zones,  viz :  (1) 
Mountains  with  metals  of  secondary  and  eruptive  formation,  one-tenth;  (2)  Apon- 


334 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


nines  of  secondary  and  tertiary  formation,  four- tenths ;  (3)  hills  of  a  late  tertiary 
formation,  three-tenths ;  (4)  plains  of  quaternary  and  alluvial  formation,  two-tenths. 

Temperature:  The  climate,  mild  in  winter  and  temperate  in  summer,  is,  notwith- 
standing, subject  to  chilly  weather  in  the  autumn  and  white  frost  in  the  spring.  The 
yearly  average  temperature  in  Tuscany  is  between  14°  and  16°  centigrade ;  the  mer- 
cury seldom  falls  below  7°  below  zero  at  Florence,  5°  at  Arezzo  and  Sienna,  3°  at 
Lucca,  and  2°  at  Pisa.  Snow  seldom  falls,  and  never^lasts  long.  The  Apennines  are, 
however,  often  covered  with  snow,  and  sometimes  until  the  spring. 

Soil:  Alluvial.  The  soil  is  mountainous,  the  ground  somewhere  excessively  stony, 
and  in  other  regions  refractory  to  good  culture,  owing  to  the  abundance  of  clay. 

Substratum. — Florence:  Secondary,  late  tertiary,  and  quaternary  formation.  Pisa: 
Late  tertiary,  quaternary,  and  alluvial  formation.  Sienna :  Secondary  and  tertiary 
formation  of  Cretaceous  period.  Volterra :  Secondary  and  eruptive  formation. 


WHITE  CATTLE  OF  TUSCANY.* 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  CROSBY. 

I  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  report  regarding  a  very 
fine  breed  of  Italian  cattle,  with  the  hope  that  it  may  prove  useful  in 
inducing  some  of  our  cattle  breeders  to  introduce  them  into  the  United 
States. 

For  many  centuries  the  Val  di  Chiana  (Tuscany)  has  been  celebrated 
for  its  whire  cattle,  large  in  size,  docile,  and  easily  managed,  capable  of 
enduring  great  amount  of  work,  and  making  excellent  beef,  they  being 
very  easily  fattened.  I  have  visited  many  of  the  estates  and  poderi  for 
the  purpose  of  examining  these  cattle,  and  certainly  agree  with  the 
proprietors  and  farmers  in  their  opinion  that  for  working  purposes  and 
beef  they  are  far  superior  to  the  Durham  and  Shorthorn  breeds  so  popu- 
lar in  England  and  America.  For  milk  and  butter  I  do  not  recom- 
mend them.  Bulls  begin  to  serve  heifers  and  cows  from  the  age  of  two 
years  up  to  four  or  five  years,  when  they  are  slaughtered.  Heifers  are 
taken  to  the  bull  when  twenty  months  old,  and  are  usually  bred  to  until 
eight  to  ten  years  old.  Oxen,  and  heifers  as  well,  are  put  in  yoke  when 
twenty  months  old,  and  are  fit  for  work  at  the  age  of  two  years,  and, 
unless  injured,  stand  five  years  more  of  hard  work,  when  they  are  usu- 
ally stall-fed  and  slaughtered.  About  the  same  food  and  fodder  are  used 
for  fattening  as  in  the  United  States. 

The  following  tabular  form  will  show  interesting  details  as  to  age, 
weight,  and  price: 


Kind. 

Age. 

'  Height. 

Weight. 

Prioo. 

From— 

To— 

From— 

To— 

Calft  

Birth 

Pounds. 
45 
330 
880 
880 
1,550 
1,550 
1,850 
750 

Pounds. 
75 
450 
1,100 
1.000 
1,750 
2,200 
2,200 
1,500 

Heifer  

Six  months. 
'One  year  
One  year  
Two  years.. 
Three  years 
Three  years. 
Three  years 

4  feet 

5  feet 

$120  00 
80  00 
200  00 
250  00 
140  00 
140  00 

$140  00 
100  00 

300  00 
160  00 
180  00 

5  feet  2  inches.. 
5  feet  7  inches.. 
6  feet  3  inches.. 
6  feet  3  inches.. 
5  feet  2  inches.  . 

BullJ  

Ox  

Cow  § 

*  Republished  from  Consular  Reports,  No.  17. 

t  Calves  selected  for  working  purposes  are  castrated  at  two  months  of  age. 

T  Bulls  four  years  old  are  kept  apart  for  one  month  to  fatten,  and  may  increase  140  pounds  weight 
and  be  sold  at  from  $16  to  $18  per  cwt.* 

§Cows  eight  or  ten  years  old,  no  longer  used  for  breeding,  are  kept  three  months  for  fattening,  and 
are  susceptible  of  250  pounds  increase  in  weight.  Price,  from  $8  to  $14  per  cwt. 


ITALY.  355 

These  cattle  have  very  long  and  straight  backs  and  well-rounded 
bodies  ;  neck  very  thick,  with  abundant  mantle ;  head  light  and  clear 
out,  with  short  and  thin  horns  ;•  ears  long  and  flesh-colored  inside ;  legs 
rather  large  and  strong,  and  placed  well  under;  hoofs  well  proportioned, 
and  not  too  straight  j  tail  quite  short,  and  black  at  the  end.  This  black 
and  silver  color  extends  over  the  muzzle,  along  the  back  to  the  rump, 
when  it  ceases  and  appears  again  at  the  end  of  the  tail.  The  color  of 
the  hair  is  a  silver  white,  very  thin,  and  abundant. 

The  principal  markets  for  these  white  cattle  are  Arezzo,  Oastiglione, 
Florentine,  and  Tojano  della  Ohiana  in  the  province  of  Tuscany.  An- 
nual fairs  are  held,  beginning  after  harvest  time,  about  the  middle  of 
August,  and  generally  increasing  in  importance  until  December. 

I  have  made  inquiries  as  to  the  cost  of  transportation  by  steamer  from 
the  nearest  port,  Leghorn,  to  New  York,  and  in  reply  the  agent  of  the 
Anchor  Line  informs  me  that  $50  per  head  is  charged,  the  shipper  pro- 
viding all  fittings,  stalls,  boxes,  fodder,  and  attendants,  the  ship  only 
providing  water.  This  line  of  steamers  is  very  good  and  the  cattle  can 
be  well  accommodated  on  the  upper  deck.  The  length  of  voyage  is 
about  twenty-six  days. 

J.  SCHUYLEB  CKOSBY, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

ej  May  20,  1882. 


CATTLE  IN  VENETIA. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  NOYES,  OF  VENICE. 
GEOLOGICAL  FORMATION  OP  YENETIA. 

The  Venetian  territory  would  seem  at  first  glancfc  specially  fitted  by 
nature  for  a  grazing  country.  The  large  proportion  of  its  surface  oc- 
cupied by  hills  and  mountains  of  moderate  elevation,  the  abundance 
of  its  vratcr  courses,  the  nature  of  its  soil,  often  of  superior  fertility, 
and  everywhere  good  for  forage,  are  all  in  its  favor.  These  advantages, 
however,  are  subject  to  a  serious  drawback  in  the  dry  heat  of  the  cli- 
mate, unless  the  want  of  moisture  be  supplied  by  a  generous  irrigation 
to  combat  the  danger  of  destructive  drought.  Without  this  the  pros- 
perity of  live  stock  will  always  be  uncertain  and  its  multiplication  lim* 
ited. 

An  idea  of  the  general  character  ot  the  region  is  suggested  by  the 
fact  that  it  contains  a  large  part  of  the  southern  water-shed  of  the  Alps, 
and  several  of  their  loftier  peaks,  together  with  the  delta  of  the  great 
north  Italian  rivers.  Few  portions  of  Europe  offer  such  extreme  con- 
trasts of  scenery  and  situation,  and  though  the  Italian  climate  and  the 
community  of  an  ancient  civilization  do  much  to  soften  the  discordances 
of  local  influence,  so  completely  opposed,  there  must  still  remain  a  great 
diversity  in  the  conditions  of  life. 

Geologists  agree  that  the  Alps  were  among  the  last  upheavings  of 
the  primeval  sea,  and  that  their  enormous  masses  are  little  else  than  the 
fossilized  remains  of  its  animal  life.  They  also  tell  us  that  this  upheav- 
ing was  the  result  of  intermittent  volcanic  action  continued  during  the 
Tertiary  period,  and  underlying  the  whole  area  of  Italy ;  gradually  sub- 
siding to  the  north  as  the  surface  fixed  into  its  present  form,  but  show- 


336  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

ing  its  last  extinct  craters  in  the  Eoman  Campagna,  and  its  last  erup- 
tions at  Vesuvius  and  -ZEtna. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  Tertiary  and  at  the  commencement  of  tho 
Quaternary,  the  Venetian  Alps  presented  very  much  the  aspect  of  tbo 
Fiords  of  Norway — the  sea  washed  their  bases  and  penetrated  into  every 
opening  to  the  foot  of  the  great  glaciers  which  descended  between  their 
precipitous  spurs.  The  inciting  of  these  glaciers,  with  tho  altered  tem- 
perature of  the  region,  left  in  the  deeper  cavities  the  masses  of  impris- 
oned water  which  now  form  the  Italian  lakes,  and  with  tho  dispersion 
of  their  abandoned  moraines  commenced  the  formation  of  the  Lombard 
and  Venetian  plain. 

The  composition  of  this  alluvion  shows  everywhere  the  material  of 
the  mountain  sides  from  which  it  is  derived.  Its  arrangement  depends 
on  the  capricious  action  of  the  streams  which  transported  it,  as  well 
as  of  great  inundations,  which  have  changed  its  whole  surface  at  inter- 
vals. At  its  eastern  limit,  where  the  margin  of  plain  grows  narrower 
and  slopes  more  rapidly  to  the  sea,  the  variations  of  soil  and  surface  be- 
come more  frequent,  as  the  rapid  torrents  change  their  course  and  deposit 
their  coarser  detritus  in  fresh  localities,  carrying  their  tine  sediment  to 
the  lower  levels,  still  half  submerged  by  the  Adriatic. 

THE  PROVINCE  OF  TJDINE. 

This  narrow  seaboard,  with  the  broader  region  of  the  Carnic  Alps 
stretching  north  and  east  to  the  Austrian  frontier,  forms  the  province 
of  Udine,  still  known  as  the  ancient  Friuli. 

It  is  composed,  in  the  plain,  of  tracts  of  barren  clay,  passing  into 
more  fertile  mixtures  with  calcareous  matter,  everywhere  sown  with 
gravel,  beds  of  which  occur  constantly  in  the  surface  as  underlying  it 
at  various  depths.  At  a  distance  from  the  water  courses  the  soil,  with 
a  smaller  admixture  of  gravel,  becomes  more  fertile.  Along  the  lowest 
border  are  small  tracts  of  rich  alluvion,  soon  sinking  into  salt  marsh, 
liable  to  inundation  from  the  sea  with  the  unusual  persistence  of  a 
strong  southeast  wind.  The  mountainous  portion  of  the  province  or 
Carnia  is  a  confusion  of  narrow  and  sinuous  valleys  and  irregular  hill- 
sides, with  a  considerable  surface  of  vegetable  earth  in  broken  masses, 
mostly  of  schist  and  limestone,  with  rare  apparitions  of  granite  and 
tufa,  affording  tolerable  pasture  in  nearly  every  part.  A  few  of  tho 
summits  of  the  region  approach  a  height  of  9,000  feet.  Gemona,  the 
principal  town,  stands  at  932  feet  above  the  sea,  and  villages  are  found 
at  2,100  feet. 

The  medium  temperature  is  18°  to  20°  0.  in  summer,  2°  to  3°  C.  in 
winter,  with  a  minimum  of  15°  O.  in  the  last  thirty-eight  years.  Rain 
and  hail  are  frequent,  and  grow  more  so  with  the  destruction  of  forests, 

MOUNTAIN  AND  PASTURE  LANDS  OF  UDINE. 

All  reports  concur  in  stating  the  cultivated  meadows  at  about  one- 
sixth  of  the  arable  land  in  the  plain,  planted  with  lucern  principally, 
and,  unmanured  or  cared  for,  they  give  an  average  of  forty  quintals  to 
the  acre.  .These  meadow  grasses,  lucern  and  clover,  were  only  intro- 
duced here  toward  the  beginning  of  the  century,  and  their  cultivation 
seems  little  understood.  In  the  more  fertile  soil  of  the  sea-side  a  better 
quality  of  forage  and  a  more  careful  cultivation  is  found  on  the  estates  of 
a  few  large  proprietors,  and  here  tho  improvement  of  the  stock  has  been 
pursued  with  growing  interest.  Some  remarkable  products  are  shown 


ITALY.  337 

;is  the  results  of  experiments  commenced  early  in  the  century  by  the 
Princess  Hacciocchi. 

In  the  mountains  the  cultivation  of  forage  is  much  more  extensive, 
embracing  about  30,000  to  40,000  acres,  besides  natural  pasturage  every- 
where, in  the  valleys  and  lower  hills  excellent,  of  inferior  quality  in  the 
heights.  The  whole  of  this  region  is  full  of  busy  pastoral  life,  but  of 
the  most  primitive  description,  and  far  from  prosperous  as  it  should  be 
with  such  facilities  and  more  improved  methods.  Irrigation  is  rare,  con- 
fined to  cases  where  some  mountain  brook  can  be  turned  in  a  few  fields, 
and  manure  all  reserved,  where  it  is  possible,  for  the  scanty  plantation 
of  cereals. 

HERDING-  AND  DAIRYING  IN  UDINE. 

During  the  summer  months  some  25,000  head  of  cattle  graze  on  these 
pastures,  partly  belonging  to  the  district  and  partly  to  the  plain  below, 
the  best  tracts  of  pasture  being  rented  by  speculators,  who  make  a  bus- 
iness of  conducting  them  to  these  heights,  combining  with  this  indus- 
trv  a  considerable  fabrication  of  dairy  produce,  receiving  half  the  milk 
and  product  as  the  price  of  pasture  and  fabrication.  The  cheese  is  said 
to  be  excellent,  and  is  of  three  kinds:  Grasso  fresco,  di  conserva,  and 
curd  or  inag.ro  for  consumption  on  the  spot.  This,  with  the  butter,  is 
largely  demanded  in  the  low  country,  where  no  production  of  the  kind 
exists,  and  finds  its  way  in  smaller  quantities  to  Venice  and  Trieste. 
The  last  official  reports  state  the  commercial  aspect  of  their  industry  to 
be  discouraging.  In  only  one  or  two  districts  is  there  any  satisfactory 
sale  or  demand.  It  is  impossible  to  ascertain  the  proportions  of  milk 
and  product,  the  proceeds  being  entirely  primitive  and  rustic,  with  no 
attention  to  any  system.  The  yield  of  milk  is  stated  at  9  pounds  per 
cow  at  the  highest  limit,  and,  with  fresh  pasture ;  later  in  the  season  or 
in  advanced  gestation,  it  descends  to  7  and  to  4  pounds.  For  cows 
without  milk  the  price  of  pasture  for  the  season  (from  June  1  to  Sep- 
teiiber  1)  is  $1.40;  if  under  three  years,  $1;  for  calves,  GO  cents. 

CATTLE   OF  UDINE. 

The  cattle  of  these  mountains  are  an  indiscriminate  mixture  of  all  the 
races  of  the  neighboring  pastures — Tyrolese,  Styrian,  Carinthian,  Bel- 
lanese — grafted  in  the  domestic  animal,  vulgarly  known  as  ih&friulana, 
largely  represented  here,  but  belonging  more  properly  to  the  lower 
plain,  and  one  of  the  numerous  varieties  of  a  race  of  animals  now  pre- 
dominant in  every  part  of  Italy.  The  Polisine,  Reggian,  Pugliese,  .Ro- 
man, Tuscan,  &c.,  all  bear  the  persistent  stamp  of  the  same  great  family, 
modified  by  inilueuces  of  climate  and  situation. 

Professor  Keller,  of  Padua,  citing  an  authoritative  work  of  Pabst, 
"Instruction  and  Guide  to  the  Breeding  of  Horned  Cattle,"  says  :  "Ex- 
tending from  the  steppes  of  Eastern  Europe  and  Asia,  there  is  found 
in  Podolia,  the  Ukraine,  Volhynia,  Hungary,  Moldavia,  Wallachia, 
Transylvania,  and  Southern  Eussia,  a  typical  race,  widely  diffused,  ex- 
tremely apt  for  labor,  fairly  capable  of  fattening,  yielding  in  particular 
abundant  and  excellent  suet,  but  little  milk.  Spreading  into  regions 
so  extended  and  various  in  soil,  forage,  and  other  conditions,  one  meets 
many  gradations  of  this  race  differing  in  weight,  physical  constitution, 
&c.  The  essential  differences  which  remain  constant  indicate  two  sub- 
divisions, the  Hungarian-Transylvanian  and  the  Podolian-Moldere. 
The  former  is  among  the  heaviest  of  existing  races  ;  the  second  is  lower 
in  stature,  with  shorter  horns.  As  a  rule,  there  is  no  worse  race  for 
H.  Ex.  51 22 


338  CATTLE    AND    DAIEY    FARMING. 

the  production  of  milk,  but  though  in  small  quantity  their  milk  is  ex- 
tremely rich,  and  in  Hungary  are  occasionally  found  excellent  milch 
cows.  This  deficiency  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  in  their  origi- 
nal home  the  animals  are  rarely  or  never  milked.  On  the  other  hand, 
this  race  gives  the  best  of  animals  for  labor  and  is  valuable  for  slaugh- 
ter, not  only  for  the  superior  quality  of  its  flesh,  but  the  abundance  of 
suet  in  comparison  with  other  races."  The  defects  of  this  animal,  more 
or  less  persistent  in  all  modifications,  besides  the  scarcity  of  milk,  are : 
head  too  heavy,  with  a  neck  excessively  long,  depressed  ribs,  the  back 
narrow,  and  the  limbs  long  and  ill  furnished  with  muscle.  This  is  the 
original  type  of  most  of  the  Italian  races,  and,  more  or  less  altered  by 
long  domestication  and  indiscriminate  mixtures,  it  is  the  prevailing 
element  of  the  stock  of  this  region. 

Another  and  less  numerous  group  is  found  only  here  and  in  certain 
parts  of  the  provinces  of  Parma  and  Piacenza,  smaller  than  the  above, 
with  a  uniform  coat  of  red  or  reddish- brown,  amber- colored  horn  and 
hoof,  rose-tinted  lip  and  nostril,  and  white  eyelids.  Showing  no  affinity 
with  any  of  the  Alpine  or  Podolian  types,  it  is  generally  conjectured  to 
be  a  relic  of  the  aboriginal  race,  the  bos  italicus  described  by  Latin 
authors  and  figured  on  ancient  monuments.  The  animal  at  present  is 
said  to  be  inferior  for  fattening,  fairly  good  for  labor,  with  a  tolerable 
yield  of  milk.  Specimens  were  presented  at  the  Universal  Exhibition 
of  Vienna  in  1873,  but  were  reported  to  possess  no  special  merit  of 
any  kind,  while  open  to  objection  for  disadvantages  and  diversities  of 
form  and  under  size. 

These  animals  seem  to  answer  the  present  requirements  of  the  country; 
with  the  broken  and  difficult  nature  of  a  large  portion  of  its  surface, 
the  want  of  irrigation  and  the  imperfect  cultivation  of  the  remainder, 
the  region  seems  suited  for  animals  of  general  usefulness,  indifferent 
to  hardships  and  privation. 

IMPROVING  UDINE  CATTLE. 

The  spirit  of  improvement,  however,  is  active  and  growing.  The 
agricultural  community  are  earnest  in  seeking  the  best  means  of  im- 
provement, and  the  essays  so  far  made  have  been  attended  with  a  suc- 
cess which  attracts  general  attention  and  interest.  Independently  of 
private  experiments,  the  provincial  administration  has  expended  $10,000 
during  the  last  few  years  in  the  acquisition  of  choic'e  reproducers,  bulls 
and  cows,  afterward  transferred  to  private  breeders.  The  cross  con- 
sidered most  successful  so  far  is  with  the  Swiss  race  of  Freiburg. 

The  province  just  described  is  one  of  the  largest  in  the  kingdom, 
embracing  all  varieties  of  surface  and  a  large  portion  of  the  Alps, 
which  form  its  eastern  extremity/  It  is  mostly  a  pastoral  region,  but  in 
the  proportion  of  cattle  to  its  surface  ranks  only  sixth  in  the  Venetian 
group,  possessing  21.2  to  the  square  kilometer,  while  the  average  is  25, 
with  the  same  inferiority  in  the  character  of  its  races,  and  a  greater 
variety  of  bastard  and  nondescript  mixtures. 

CATTLE  IN  TREVISO. 

The  adjoining  inland  province  of  Treviso  falls  below  it  both  in  num- 
ber and  quality  of  stbck,  offering  only  a  wider  field  for  the  propagation 
of  the  same  nameless  medley  of  subraces,  generally  variations  of  the 
Podolian,  which  always  seems  to  displace  other  animals  in  the  hot  and 
dry  plains  by  a  sort  of  natural  survivance.  This  region,  lying  almost 


ITALY.  339 

entirely  in  tbe  plain,  is  in  high,  cultivation.  Its  norther  border,  includ- 
ing the  last  foot-hills  and  slopes,  and  sheltered  by  the  Alps,  which  here 
reach  greater  elevations,  is  specially  suited  by  soil  and  southern  expos- 
ure for  vine  growing.  This  is  at  present  the  prevailing  interest  of  the 
province,  and  absorbs  public  attention  to  the  prejudice  of  other  im- 
provements; so  that  cattle-breeding,  which  had  never  received  much 
attention  before,  seems  likely  to  receive  still  less  in  the  future.  It  is 
complained  that  the  present  stock  is  not  sufficient  for  manure,  and 
hardly  for  tillage. 

CATTLE  IN  THE  PROVINCE  OF  BELLUNO. 

The  province  of  Bclluno,  extending  north  of  this  to  the  ridge  of  the 
Alps,  is  of  more  interest.  Here  nature  has  made  pastoral  industries 
a  necessary  resource  for  a  large  proportion  of  the  inhabitants ;  and, 
pursued  with  increasing  zeal  and  intelligence,  they  are  gaining  impor- 
tance as  a  means  of  prosperity  for  a  region  proverbially  destitute.  With- 
out the  great  summits  or  lofty  plateaus  of  the  central  Alps,  it  belongs  to 
that  zone  below  the  limit  of  eternal  snow  attached  to  the  flank  of  every 
great  mountain  range,  where  the  ridges  become  broken  and  tormented, 
and  the  torrents  lose  themselves  in  deep  gorges,  often  more  inhospita- 
ble than  the  broader  elevations  above.  This  region,  known  as  the  Dolo- 
mite Alps,  is  celebrated  for  the  violence  of  its  dislocations  and  the  rav- 
ages of  its  streams  and  ancient  glaciers,  aided  by  the  destructible  ma- 
terial of  its  rocky  masses.  Nineteen  of  its  peaks  rise  to  a  height  of  9,200 
feet,  more  or  less ;  eleven  surpass  it,  reaching  an  extreme  of  10,260 
feet.  Vegetation  ceases  at  5,800  feet,  human  habitation  at  about  4,575, 
and  cultivation  at  4,000.  Deposits  of  vegetable  soil  are  rare  and  inse- 
cure, being  always  liable,  even  in  the  most  favorable  localities,  to  be 
swept  off  or  buried  under  masses  of  gravel  by  the  frequent  inundations. 
Only  about  one-thirteenth  part  of  the  surface  is  capable  of  any  kind  of 
cultivation,  the  rest  being  largely  occupied  by  forests,  and,  leaving  out 
of  calculation  spaces  of  totally  barren  rock,  five-sevenths  of  the.  whole 
is  pasture  land. 

The  lower  and  more  cultivated  valley,  particularly  that  around  Belluno 
and  Feltre,  the  principal  towns,  offers  a  soil  of  moderate  fertility,  argil- 
laceous calcareous,  reposing  on  a  varying  substratum  of  marls,  con- 
glomerates, and  coarse  glacial  detritus.  In  the  rest  of  the  province  the 
calcareous  element  prevails  more  generally  than  in  other  parts  of  the 
Venetian  territory,  from  the  immense  masses  of  dolomite  limestone 
which  crown  all  the  mountains  of  the  region,  exposed  in  cliffs  and  walls, 
and  which  give  it  its  striking  character.  These  easily  disaggregated 
masses,  interrupted  occasionally  by  volcanic  irruptions  of  porphyry  and 
beds  of  tufa,  more  rarely  by  deeper-lying  masses  of  green  and  red  sand- 
stone or  schist,  form  the  geology  of  the  mountains. 

The  climate,  though  softened  by  southern  exposure  and  by  the  ab- 
sence of  great  accumulations  of  snow  during  part  of  the  year,  has  not 
the  mild  and  equable  temperature  of  the  Venetian  plain— the  average 
ranges  3  degrees  lower  in  the  southern  valleys,  and  in  the  higher  dis- 
tricts has  all  the  severity  of  alpine  nature,  with  a  medium  temperature 
of  6.92°  0.  and  snowfall  of  146.4  C. 

All  these  data  suppose  a  rude  pastoral  life,  merging  into  that  of  the 
neighboring  Tyrol,  of  which  the  province  is  indeed  but  the  southern  ex- 
tension, and  the  animals  of  the  region  bear  the  same  stamp  of  relation- 
ship The  resemblance  is  so  close  that  it  is  an  unsettled  question 
whether  the  type  known  as  the  Bellunese  is  not  a  simple  modification 


340  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

of  the  Tyrolese.  Both  are  of  middling  stature,  with  the  coat  of  uniform 
color  and  short-curved  horns ;  both  are  very  much  inferior  to  the  Swiss 
as  milk  producers,  with  excellent  qualities  for  labor  and  fattening ;  and 
the  meat  of  both,  with  the  same  forage,  has  the  same  texture  and  flavor. 
Add  to  this  the  effect  of  contact  and  intermixture  for  so  many  cen- 
turies, and  their  present  affinity  hardly  admits  a  doubt.  The  special 
traits  of  the  Bellunese  are  a  shorter  head,  with  the  ear  much  smaller, 
and  the  eye  more  prominent  and  vivacious,  the  chest  broader,  and  the 
ribs  more  open  and  rounded.  He  is  more  short-coupled,  with  limbs 
shorter  and  thicker  at  the  knees ;  his  coat  is  more  decidedly  gray,  while 
that  of  the  Tyrolese  is  tawney  and  whitish,  with  a  thicker  and  more 
porous  skin,  and  the  horns  less  robust  and  of  a  lighter  tint  of  black. 
The  Tyrolese  cow  gives  rather  more  milk,  but  both  races  are  docile  and 
enduring  for  labor,  while  the  Bellunese  has  a  special  tendency  to  fatten, 
and  a  remarkable  precocity  of  development,  attributed  to  the  abundance 
of  tenons  oxides  furnished  by  the  rocks  (dolomic  and  calcareous  car- 
bonates) of  these  mountains.  At  two  years  the  bull  is  apt  for  pro 
creation;  many  assert  that  he  is  so  at  eighteen  months;  at  the  same  age 
(two  years)  the  ox  is  capable  of  hard  labor,  and  at  three  years  commands 
the  highest  price  for  slaughter ;  it  is  rarely  the  case  that  heifers  are  not 
impregnated  before  the  end  of  the  second  year.  It  is  quite  possible  that 
this  precocity  may  not  persist  in  the  race  when  removed  from  its  native 
locality,  and  it  is  liable  to  entail  a  corresponding  tendence  to  early  de- 
cline. 

Some  breeders  assert  this  animal  to  be  superior  to  the  Tyrolese,  and 
propose  to  adopt  it  as  the  type  best  suited  to  the  region,  improving  it 
by  selection,  without  further  mixture  of  foreign  blood,  unless  perhaps 
with  the  view  to  obtain  a  better  yield  of  milk  in  certain  districts.  A 
bull  of  this  race  has  been  installed  as  official  reproducer  by  the  agri- 
cultural board  of  Conegliano  and  the  surrounding  region  in  the  neigh- 
boring province  of  Treviso,  and  others  are  to  be  found  in  Padua  and 
Vicenza.  In  the  meanwhile  the  commercial  importance  of  the  stock  is 
attested  by  the  growing  demand  both  for  labor  and  slaughter  in  various 
parts  of  Italy,  and  the  sale  and  exportation  of  nearly  all  the  annual  pro- 
duction of  beeves  and  bullocks,  together  with  a  sixth  of  the  cows. 

The  whole  subject  of  breeding  and  treatment  is  becoming  the  domi- 
nant interest  of  the  community.  The  provincial  administration  maintains 
four  veterinary  stations  at  different  points,  where  competent  specialists 
not  only  superintend  the  management  of  animals  and  report  on  their 
condition,  but  hold  a  school  for  instructing  the  population  in  the  best 
modes  of  care  and  management.  Private  proprietors  are  paying  more 
attention  to  the  improvement  of  their  stock,  and  reproducing  stations, 
maintained  by  communal  authorities,  are  becoming  frequent.  The  Gov- 
ernment in  Italy  does  not  implant  such  stations  directly  ,'but  encourages 
their  creation  by  prizes  and  subsidies  to  the  ingrative  of  individuals  or 
associations.  The  same  zeal  is  shown  in  the  construction  of  stables  on 
a  better  system  to  replace  the  pestilential  hovels  where  the  animals  and 
the  peasant  family  formerly  sought  shelter  and  warmth  together,  at  the 
expense  of  health  in  the  long  winters,  as  well  as  of  sheds  necessary  for 
protection  in  the  bleak  mountain  pastures. 

An  indication  of  the  progress  made  is  found  in  the  expressions  used 
in  an  in  quest  formerly  made  on  the  subject  under  the  Austrian  Govern- 
ment, speaking  of  the  cattle  of  Belluno;  "  These  animals  in  four  or  five 
years'  time  reach  only  a  middling  size,  and  are  not  susceptible  of  further 
growth  without  choice  and  costly  food.  The  traders  of  the  department 
of  the  Tagliamento  (Udine)  buy  both  oxen  and  cows,  which,  transported 


ITALY.  341 

to  a  region  of  more  succulent  forage,  resume  their  growth,  and  give  a 
large  profit  to  the  purchaser.  In  consequence  the  district,  although 
possessing  an  inferior  race,  is  always  sure  of  a  ready  sale  for  it." 

Under  the  title  "forage"  occurs  the  following:  u  Some  few  farmers 
have  commenced  the  cultivation  of  lucern  (medica).  The  peasants  find 
great  difficulty  in  drying  this  grass  so  as  to  prevent  the  pulverization 
of  the  leaves,  a  difficulty  they  cannot  surmount  for  want  of  an  acquaint- 
ance with  the  proper  method  of  proceeding  in  the  case."  These  short 
quotations  comment  each  other  j  at  present  lucern  and  clover  are  cul- 
tivated wherever  cultivation  of  any  kind  is  possible,  though  the  product 
is  still  far  from  large.  In  elevated  regions  they  are  replaced  by  natural 
forage  so  wholesome,  nourishing,  and  aromatic  as  to  render  the  exten- 
sion of  artificial  meadows  almost  useless. 

The  plants  which  occur  most  frequently  in  these  mountain  pastures 
are,  Phleum  alpinum,  Alopecurus  gerardi,  Agrostis  canina,  Sislesia  cm- 
rulea,  Poa  CLlpina,  Festuca  duriuscula,  Kceleria  grandiflora,  Trisetum  Jla- 
vescens,  Aira  flexuosa,  Agrostis  vulgaris,  Nardus  aristata,  and  in  still 
more  elevated  positions  the  Agrostis  alpina  and  rupestris,  and  the  Arena 
sclieuclizeri. 

The  arable  surface  of  the  province  is  30,000  acres,  and  that  producing 
forage  of  all  kinds,  175,000 ;  of  which  temporary  cultivated  meadows 
take  up  8,000  ;  permanently  cultivated,  42,000 :  natural  pastures, 
124,000. 

Fjjially  it  may  be  said  that  the  cattle  of  this  province  appear  to  be 
assuming  the  consistent  and  distinctive  character  of  a  special  race, 
sought  and  imported  as  such  into  the  surrounding  region.  Whether  it 
will  supplant  the  Tyrolese,  so  generally  resorted  to  for  breeding  and 
slaughter,  is  doubtful.  Whether  it  possesses  merits  sufficient  to  make 
it  desirable  for  importation  into  the  United  States  is  more  doubtful  still, 
in  presence  of  the  pure  Tyrolese,  which  seems  to  preserve  in  a  higher 
degree  its  special  race  qualities. 

DAIRYING  IN  BELLUNO. 

Another  effect  of  the  same  progressive  impulse  has  been  the  intro- 
duction of  a  better  system  of  dairy  industry.  The  prevailing  accounts 
from  every  quarter  of  this  Venetian  territory  represent  this  class  of 
production  as  being  everywhere  more  or  less  neglected,  or,  at  best,  fab- 
ricated by  the  most  antiquated  methods  to  suit  the  rough  taste  of  the 
country  consumer,  in  most  cases  for  family  use  only,  and  not  of  a  quality 
to  find  a  market  abroad  where  there  was  a  surplus  to  export.  The 
modest  export  from  the  province  of  Udine  has  already  been  mentioned, 
and  here,  with  the  moderate  product  of  milk  and  the  scarcity  of  other 
resources,  something  more  could  be  added  to  the  economy  of  the  region. 
This  is  now  taking  a  practical  form,  thanks  to  the  intelligence  and 
energy  of  a  parish  priest  of  the  valley  of  Agordo,  who,  in  imitation  of 
the  Swiss  "chalets"  and  of  the  "fruiteries"  of  the  French  Jura,  founded 
the  first  associated  dairy,  "  Latteria  Sociale,"  in  his  village  in  1872. 
The  idea  was  simple,  and  immediately  realized  a  sensible  advantage, 
and  it  lias  since  extended  as  rapidly  as  could  be  expected  in  this  iso- 
lated and  difficult  region.  A  community  or  a  neighborhood  contribute 
the  modest  means  at  their  disposal  for  installing  a  boiler,  a  store-room, 
and  the  few  necessary  implements,  the  most  improved  possible,  and 
employ  an  experienced  practician  to  carry  on  the  industry.  They  then 
bring  in  their  surplus  milk  daily,  of  which  a  strict  account  is  kept, 


'342 


'CATTLE    AND   DAIRY  -  FARMING. 


and,  at  the  end  of  the  season,  receive  in  exchange  a  proportionate  share 
of  the  product,  or,  at  choice,  a  credit  on  the  establishment,  which  under- 
takes to  dispose  of  the  merchandise.  The  advantages  are  the  profitable 
employment  of  much  surplus  milk,  which  would  otherwise  be  lost  or 
wasted,  a  more  economical  fabrication,  and  a  better  disposal  of  the  prod- 
uct by  the  agency  of  the  establishment. 

A  recent  account  estimates  the  gain  thus  realized  on  a  hundred  kilo- 
grams of  milk  about  as  follows : 

One  hundred  kilograms  of  milk  would  give : 


Articles. 

Handled  at  home. 

At  the  associated 
dairy. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Butter 

Kilos. 
3.00 
7.00 
3.00 

$0  93 
1  05 
30 

Kilos. 
3.400 
7.30 
3.300 

$141 
1  24 
40 

Cheese  

Curds  

Total  

2  28 

3  05 

Supposing  the  quantity  of  milk  disposable  to  be  about  24,000,000  of 
kilograms  in  the  province,  the  product,  amounting  in  the  first  case  of 
home  fabrication,  to  $547,200,  would  be  increased  by  the  "dairy*'  system 
to  $735,360,  a  gain  of  $188,160. 

In  1880  there  existed  forty  of  these  dairies,  in  more  or  less  prosperous 
operation,  and  public  opinion  favored  their  multiplication.  It  is  sup- 
posed that  at  least  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  them  would  find  advan- 
tageous conditions  in  the  province.  Some  stress  is  laid  on  them  here  as 
representing  the  first  introduction  of  co-operative  industry  of  this  kind 
in  the  region. 

It  is  contested  in  some  quarters,  however,  whether  their  products  can 
ever  compete  for  quality  with  those  of  Lombardy  and  Switzerland,  on 
account  of  the  inferior  nature  of  the  forage,  and  this  drawback  is  appre- 
hended by  their  promoters ;  but  even  if  this  be  so,  they  will  always  find 
a  large  home  and  regional  demand. 

Operations  and  results  of  some  associate  dairies  in  the  province  of  Bclluno,  for  eight 
months,  from  October  I  to  May  31. 


Commune. 

Number 
of 
cows. 

Number 
of 
days. 

Quantity  of 
milk 
brought  in. 

Total  product  obtained. 

Butter. 

Cheese. 

Curds. 

A^ordo 

215 
63 
122 
17 
104 
115 

$ 

08 
188 
10 
72 
208 

as 

1G5 
193 

267 
90 
180 
293 

]C8 
14« 
180 
187 
60 
31 
183 
210 

Kilos. 
112,519.000 
42,  400.  000 
•  84,635.000 
6,  452.  000 
78,  750.  000 
93,  889.  100 
114,  749.  650 
2C,  030.  330 
50,447.2:10 
119,  947.  450 
•  4,  Oo7.  (03 
7,  049.  600 
152,  084.  000 
78,  155.  150 

Kilos. 
3,613.000 
1,401.180 
2,  962.  000 
197.  000 
2,  575.  000 
3,  293.  700 
3,  281.  780 
744.  710 
1,794.550 
3,  058.  6GO 
12*500 
238.  7G9 
3,  390.  270 
1.  $44.  850 

Kilos. 
7,  900.  000 
3,  184.  800 
6,  G80.  000 
499.  000 
6,  206.  000 
6,  795.  000 
9,  457.  803 
2,  078.  680 
4,  575.  050 
9,  655.  770 
277.  000 
527.  000 
11.  378.  080 
u,  882.  550 

Kilog. 
2,  820.  000 
1,  273.  800 
2,  539.  000 
174.  000 
2,  362.  000 
2,  485.  500 
4,  608.  000 
1,  126.  320 
2,  388.  700 
4,  677.  850 
86.  000 
250.  500 
5,  111.  000 
2,  875.  050 

Falcado    . 

Canalo  

Vallada 

Volta°o  

l.ii  Vallo  

Huron  zo  . 

Uurenzo  

Huvonzo  .  . 

Hurenzo  

Sosperolo. 

Forno  Zoldo  

Dolraegge 

ITALY. 


343 


Operations  and  results  of  some  associate  dairies,  &c. — Continued. 


Commune. 

Selling  prices. 

Total 
value. 

Product   per  100  kilo- 
grams of  milk. 

*^Si 

Si 

2*0  ~ 

S£* 

o^g 
H 

Average  num- 
ber of  hours 
before  skim- 
ming. 

Butter. 

Cheese. 

Curds. 

Butter. 

Cheese. 

Curda. 

Lire. 
2.05 
2.00 
2.00 
1.70 
2.12 
2.07 
2.00 
2.00 
2.00 
2.00 
1.90 
1.82 
1.90 
2.00 

Lire. 
0.95 
0.95 
1.40 
1.00 
0.95 
0.92 
1.60 
1.60 
1.60 
1.30 
l.CO 
1.00 
1.50 
1.35 

Lire. 
0.60 
0.73 
0.70 
0.70 
0.60 
0.53 
0.70 
0.75 
0.70 
0.70 
0.70 
0.70 
0.60 
0.55 

Lire,. 
16,  660.  65 
6,  757.  80 
17,  065.  00 
955.  70 
12,  770.  95 
14,  387.  30 
24,  921.  64 
5,  660.  06 
12,  581.  27 
21,  944.  31 
581.  35 
1,  136.  56 
26,  500.  23 

Kilos. 
3.  200 
3.300 
3.500 
3.000 
3.300 
3.510 
2.  860 
2.780 
3.180 
2.  550 
3.160 
3.  387 
2  2?() 

Kilos. 
7.110 

7.  500 
8.000 
7.7CO 
7.  900 
7.  240 
8.242 
7.  720 
8.007 
8.  050 
6.830 
7.475 
7.430 

Kilos. 
2.500 
3.000 
3.000 
2.700 
3.000 
2.  648 
4.000 
4.190 
4.200 
3.900 
2,116 
3.  583 
3.350 
3.680 

°c. 

7.5 

8.0 
8.0 
7.0 
7.0 
5-15 
3-5 
5-0 
7.0 

?t 

8.0 
20.0 

36 
36 
30 
42 
3G 
30-24 
24-12 
24-12 
24-12 
11 
18 
22-11 
12 
20 

Falcade  

Volta^o 

La  Vallo 

Hurenzo  

Hurenzo        . 

Hurenzo. 

Forno  Zoldo 

Dolmeggo  

Piave                              .  .  . 

13,171.921    2.360 

7.500 

10.0 

NOTE. — By  substituting  pounds  for  kilograms  in  the  columns  of  quantities,  the  relative  results 
will  bo  more  speedily  realized  by  the  American  reader. 

PROVINCE  OF  VICENZA. 

The  region  just  described,  embracing  the  valleys  of  the  Piave  and  its 
confluents,  is  the  only  wholly  Alpine  and  pastoral  province  of  the  ter- 
ritory. The  Austrian  frontier,  no\^  advancing  suddenly  southward  to 
embrace  the  disputed  Trentine  valley,  crosses  the  Brenta  only'16  miles 
from  entrance  into  the  Venetian  plain  at  Bassano,  leaving  the  last  mount- 
ain spurs  to  form,  with  the  broad  terrace  at  their  feet,  the  province  of 
Vicenza.  The  Brenta  and  the  Astico,  in  close  proximity  at  their  sources, 
diverge  immediately  and  inclose  between  them  the  Alpine  portion  of 
the  province,  the  peculiar  district  known  as  the  "  Seven  Communes," 
assigned  by  tradition  as  the  refuge  of  the  Ciinbri,  defeated  by  Marius, 
and"iu  habited  at  present  by  a  population  speaking  an  ancient  Suabian 
dialect,  a  bleak  plateau  of  about  48,000  acres,  with  a  nearly  uniform 
elevation  of  about  3,200  feet,  girdled  by  mountains  of  from  6,000  to  7,000 
feet,  and  its  chief  town,  Asiago,  2,900  feet  above  the  sea.  Exposed  to  the 
prevailing  northwest  wind  from  the  snows  behind,  the  mean  annual  tem- 
perature is  7°  0.,  with  a  maximum  of  +26°.!  aiul  a  minimum  of  —18, 
while  the  meeting  of  this  cold  current  with  the  equally  prevalent  moist 
sirocco  from  the  plain  below  causes  an  abundance  of  rain,  unknown  to 
any  other  part  of  Italy,  a  medium  rainfall  for  three  years  of  1,703.9 
millimeters  toward  the  center,  and  of  2,019  at  its  southeastern  border. 
This  remarkable  humidity  and  the  excellent  soil  derived  from  the  cre- 
taceous and  dolomitic  masses,  tufa  and  red  sandstone  of  the  surround- 
ing peaks,  produce  a  luxuriant  growth  of  forest  and  pasture,  and  make 
this  the  grazing  region  of  the  whole  province. 

• 

MOUNTAIN  HERDING  AND  DAIRYING  IN  VICENZA. 

The  cattle  of  the  lowland  are  driven  here  in  great  numbers  to  pass 
the  summer  months,  and  the  irregular  fabrication  of  dairy  products 
during  this  ;;  montieation,"  as  it  is  called,  represents  nearly  all  its  in- 
dustry of  the  kind,  the  plain  being  taken  up  with  the  cultivation  of 
cereals.  This  mountain  industry  recalls  that  of  Belluno,  but  in  better 
conditions. 


344  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

The  pastures  are  excellent  for  air,  topography,  and  herbage.  The 
breed  of  cattle,  not  native,  but  a  long-dornesticated  race  of  Tyrolese  and 
Swiss,  the  cows  of  the  district  being  Swiss 'and  the  best  milkers  in  this 
part  of  Italy,  the  lowland  cattle,  an  old  stock  crossed  and  recrossed 
with  Tyrolese  till  tbe  race. has  become  general  throughout  all  the 
northern  part  of  the  province.  They  are  strong,  thick-set  animals,  with 
small  horns,  short,  thick  neck,' and  muscular  limbs ;  enduring,  but  slow 
and  heavy  in  their  movements ;  the  coat  whitish  or  light  gray.  The 
Swiss  cows  are  much  lower  in  stature,  a  darker  gray  in  color,  or  spotted 
black  and  red  according  to  their  origin ;  not  more  than  4Jfeet  in  height, 
with  delicate  limbs  and  voluminous  dugs.  Along  with" these  domesti- 
cated Swiss  cattle  are  numbers  of  more  recent  introduction  belonging 
principally  to  the  district  of  Vicenza,  and  modified  from  their  primitive 
type  by  long  residence  there.  Of  a  peculiar  breed  from  the  Val  Reu- 
daua,  where  they  are  bred  expressly  for  milking,  they  are  known  here 
as  the  cow  of  Schwytz.  With  a  soft  and  pliable  skin  they  have  a  coat 
spotted  with  brown  and  black;  around  the  eyes,  inside  the  ear,  the  line 
of  the  back,  and  the  dugs,  white ;  with  the  hinder  part  larger  and  heavier 
than  the  shoulders,  and  a  height  little  over  four  feet;  light-boned,  with 
a  small  head  and  short  horns.  These  cows  have  an  extraordinary  milk- 
ing capacity,  but  very  variable  with  the  quality  of  their  forage.  In 
Switzerland  they  are  said  to  give  as  much  as  27  liters,  or  7  gallons,  per 
day.  Here  the  same  animal  gives  only  5,  and  her  descendants  2  to  2J 
at  most. 

Of  these  and  the  migratory  herds  from  below,  some  10,000  cattle  are 
collected  here  during  the  summer  months,  of  which  5,500  belong  to  the 
district,  with  1,500  calves.  They  are  guarded  by  the  proprietor  or  ten- 
ant of  the  land,  who  undertakes  their  keeping  either  for  a  rate  in 
money  or  a  share  in  the  products  of  a  dairy  attached  to  the  pasture, 
which  makes  a  part  of  the  speculation.  The  milk  of  the  herd  is  col- 
lected here  twice  a  day,  and  being  operated  on  in  the  best  conditions 
of  freshness  and  temperature,  gives  a  large  yield  of  butter  and  cheese 
much  esteemed  in  the  neighboring  provinces.  Ordinarily  the  price  of 
pasturage,  when  taken  in  kind,  is  one-halt'  of  the  milk  and  product; 
for  cows  without  milk,  $5  to  $0,  according  to  abundance  and  quality  of 
forage.  The  yield  of  milk  varies  with  the  state  of  the  pasture  and  of 
the  animal,  better  and  more  abundant  at  the  outset  with  grass  un- 
cropped  and  diminishing  as  the  season  advances.  Averaging  this  dif- 
ference, an  ordinary  cow  is  supposed  to  give  4  to  4J  liters  of  milk  per 
day. 

BUTTER  AND   CHEESE  MAKING  IN  VICENZA.. 

In  107  of  these  mountain  dairies  are  made  three  kinds  of  cheese. 
For  the  "  Grasso  dafrutta"  the  milk  is  used  unskimmed  and  entire,  and 
in  the  early  season  produces  33  pounds  to  the  hundred  liters =26 J  gal- 
lons ;  later,  20-22.  In  one  of  these  pastures,  celebrated  for  the  quality 
of  its  products,  a  small  portion  of  butter  must  be  removed,  the  exces- 
sive richness  of  the  milk  making  the  cheese  difficult  to  keep.  After 
this  the  "  pecorino  " — half  cream — and  the  "  rnagro,"  of  skimmed  milk, 
are  made  for  the  use  of  the  neighborhood.  Of  "magro"  a  hundred 
liters  of  milk  give  about  22  pounds ;  each  pound  of  butter  taken  from 
the  milk  lessens  the  yield  of  cheese  by  2  pounds. 

In  full  season  the  same  quantity  of  milk  gives  9J  pounds  of  butter, 
more  or  less,  according  to  the  quality  of  forage.  The  methods  of  fabrica- 
tion are  those  of  the  farm-house,  without  it  thermometer  or  other  rational 
instrument,  depending  entirely  on  the  tact  and  experience  of  the  dairy- 


ITALY.  3'45 

man,  but  the  material  is  so  good  and  so  liberally  employed  that  these 
products  furnish  most  of  the  lowland  consumption,  and  are  beginning 
to  be  sought  in  its  markets  for  exportation.  This  district  contains 
about  44,000  acres  of  natural  pasture,  with  little  cultivation  of  any 
kind,  the  rest  of  its  surface  being  covered  by  forests. 

DAIRYING  IN  THE  LOWLANDS  OF  VICENZA. 

Here  and  in  the  lower  province  the  cows,  during  the  autumn,  winter, 
and  spring,  give  little  more  than  a  half  ration  of  milk,  and  the  insig- 
nificant production  of  half-skimmed  mezzo-magro  cheese  is  consumed 
at  home.  They  are  kept,  in  the  lowland  districts,  mostly  in  the  stable 
by  the  proprietor  or  by  an  industrial,  who  follows  up  his  trade  in  the 
mountains,  rents  the  cow-house  and  buys  forage  of  some  farmer  short 
of  cattle  on  a  singular  traditional  contract,  which  gives  him  right  of 
pasturage  after  the  first  cutting,  straw  at  discretion,  about  a  cord  of 
wood  and  150  faggots  for  every  12  loads  hay  he  buys,  and  1  liter  of 
wiue  every  holiday.  In  return  he  gives  all  the  manure  at  the  end  of  the 
(season,  1  j  pounds  of  cheese,  and  the  same  weight  of  butter  for  each 
load  of  hay. 

The  cows  are  not  fed  on  straw  stubble  or  Indian  corn  leaves,  as  are 
beeves,  but  on  grass  and  hay  from  natural  meadows.  These  cow-houses 
are  mostly  confined  to  the  district  of  Yicenza,  and  are  all  very  much 
on  the  same  plan,  a  long,  low  construction,  with  a  file  of  animals  on  each 
side,  separated  by  low  "partitions  of  wood  3  feet  2  inches  high  and  5 
feet  8  long,  leaving  between  them  a  stall  G  feet  6  wide  for  two  Animals, 
with  a  flooring  raised  6  or  8  inches  from  the  alley  of  5  feet  wide  down 
the  middle ;  grated  windows  over  the  heads  of  the  cattle,  sometimes 
glazed  in  winter.  The  calves  are  tied  up  promiscuously  at  one  end  of 
the  stable  in  a  space  left  for  the  purpose. 

All  this  lower  section  of  the  province,  the  summer  residence  of  wealthy 
families  from  the  neighboring  cities,  and  containing  an  unusual  number 
of  their  large  estates,  shows  at.  once  the  benefit  of  such  a  class  of  pro- 
prietors, many  of  whom  occupy  themselves  with  the  breeding  of  cattle, 
so  that  by  their  example  as  well  as  their  immediate  agency  the  breed 
of  the  country  has  been  nearly  transformed. 

The  climate  of  this  region  is  one  of  the  best  tempered  of  the  territory, 
free  from  the  excessive  humidity  of  the  plateau  above  and  less  subject 
to  the  long  droughts  of  the  lower  plain.  The  difference  from  that  of  the 
mountain  district  just  described  is  strongly  marked  by  the  advance  of 
from  fifteen  days  to  a  month  in  the  harvests. 

At  Yicenza  the  medium  temperature  is  04°  F.  for  the  year,  with  an 
ordinary  cold  of  20.1  at  the  lowest  in  winter,  and  an  average  heat  of  87.1 
for  midsummer,  and  a  very  regular  transition  of  seasons  5  injurious 
droughts  rare,  except  in  the  most  southern  districts. 

In  the  valley  of  the  Brenta,  the  soil,  mostly  calcareous,  is  only  of 
middling  quality,  but  there  is  considerable  cultivation  of  forage,  and 
the  breeding  of  cattle  is  followed  with  a  care  and  intelligence  that 
make  Bassauo,  at  the  opening  of  the  plain,  an  important  cattle  market, 
and  the  interest  in  this  industry  increases  in  descending  to  the  neighbor- 
ing province  of  Padua,  which  "is  its  principal  center  for  Venetia. 

West  of  the  Brcnta  the  torrential  impetuosity  of  the  streams  which 
traverse  this  intermediate  region  between  plain  and  mountain,  and  par- 
ticularly of  the  Astico,  has  accumulated  a  deposit  of  the  glacial  detritus 
of  the  upper  valley,  making  the  subsoil  of  this  central  portion  of  the 
province  little  more  than  a  bed  of  stones  and  gravel,  sometimes  varied 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


by  a  rough  conglomerate  of  the  same  materials  thinly  covered  by  a  lave/ 
of  vegetable  soil  rarely  reaching  the  depth  of  one-half  yard,  sterilized 
by  the  porous  nature  of  the  mass  below,  and  by  the  frequence  in  cer- 
tain localities  of  springs  and  subterranean  streams.  This  quality  of  soil 
permits  a  considerable  growth  of  forage,  and  the  district  of  Thiene  sup- 
ports a  number  of  cattle  little  inferior  to  that  of  districts  more  generally 
fertile. 

The  territory  remaining  to  tho  west  of  this  and  forming  the  more  ele- 
vated portions  of  the  province  of  Verona  offers  the  same  general  char- 
acter, and  may  be  regarded  as  an  extension  of  the  same  region.  Its 
alps  show  much  the  same  broken  stratification,  with  a  predominance  of 
cretaceous  rocks,  and  more  frequent  irruptions  of  prismatic  and  amor- 
phous basalt  and  basaltic  tufa. 

Beyond  the  Adige  the  transition  to  the  Lombard  plain  is  formed  by  tho 
moraine  of  the  great  glacier  which  once  occupied  the  bed  of  the  lake  of 
Garda,  through  whose  confused  masses  of  gravel  and  bowlders  of  all 
sorts  and  dimensions  the  emissary  stream,  the  Mincio,  has  worn  its  bed, 
often  deeply  incased,  toward  the  lowland  of  Mantua. 

FROM  MOUNTAIN  TO  LOT/LAND  STOCK-RAISING. 

The  soil  of  this  province,  a  portion  of  the  same  alluvion,  with  the 
western  part  of  that  of  Vicenza,  formed  by  the  confluents  of  the  Adige, 
an  elevated  and  rather  undulated  plain,  is  generally  fertile,  and  being 
deposited  by  smaller  streams,  presents  less  broadly  marked  differences 
of  composition  in  neighboring  localities,  always  subject,  however,  to  the 
general'law  that  its  materials  are  coarser  and  less  mingled  on  higher 
levels  toward  the  points  where  the  streams,  issuing  from  their  mountain 
valley,  deposit  their  heavier  burden,  carrying  their  finer  sediment  to 
form  a  deeper  and  richer  soil  below.  A  chemical  analysis  of  the  soil 
found  at  base  of  the  hills,  at  nearly  equidistant  points  of  this  region 
from  east  to  west,  will  give  an  idea  of  the  material  which  enter  into  its 
composition. 


Ingredients. 

Xear  Eonca 
to  the  east, 
basaltic. 

K"ear  Ve- 
rona, cal- 
careous. 

Silicic  acid                    .            .        ....                    .... 

,  parts.  . 

70 

45 

do 

28 

do  .. 

13 

8 

Organic  mutter                ..           .                                   .... 

do.... 

5 

7.50 

Ferric  acid  

do.... 

4.50 

6 

Lime  

Phosphate  of  potassa                                            ...      .... 

do  
do.... 

3 

2 

...do.... 

1 

1 

do.... 

2 

do.... 

1.50 

2.50 

Total  

100 

100 

The  same  races  already  described  are  still  in  presence  here,  less  mingled 
and  incorporated  than  in  the  regions  further  east,  partly  because  breed- 
ing has  been  less  active  and  thorough,  partly  because  the  province  of 
Verona  extending  farther  into  the  bottom  valley  of  the  Po,  the  specially 
Italianized  race  of  the  "Pugliese"  seems  the  only  animal  that  holds  his 
ground  and  still  prevails  almost  exclusively. 

1 1  lacj  Uti'puziLOiit  the  territory  the  whole  subject  of  crossing  and 
improving  breeds  is  still  disputed  and  uncertain.  Some  years  since  the 
provincial  administration  established  several  reproducing  stations,  but 
the  results  did  not  correspond  to  the  considerable  expense  incurred,  and 


ITALY.  34? 

the  intervention  of  the  authorities  was  transformed  into  a  system  of 
annual  prizes  for  the  encouragement  of  private  enterprise,  to  be  adjudged 
to  the  proprietors  of  the  best  bulls  and  their  products  at  the  regional 
cattle  shows.  This  system  seems  to  have  answered  better,  and  each 
year  the  animals  offered  for  competition  are  more  numerous  and  de- 
serving. 

The  annual  migration  to  the  heights  is  practiced,  but  without  system 
or  regularity  and  in  all  other  respects  this  region  has  no  special  feature 
of  pastoral  industry  to  command  attention. 

All  this  tract  of  country  is  occupied  by  an  extensive  cultivation  of 
cereals  often  without  intermission,  the  least  possible  space  being  allotted 
to  forage,  which  is  generally  planted  along  with  the  grain.  The  extent 
of  natural  or  permanent  pasture  is  insiguificent,  and  but  a  small  pro- 
portion of  the  surface  is  allowed  for  temporary  and  artificial  meadows 
by  the  more  intelligent  proprietors  for  the  purpose  of  special  breeding,  or 
for  the  necessity  of  rotation,  never  exceeding  one-fourth  and  averaging 
more  generally  one- tenth.  In  the  lower  districts  of  Yerona  from  5  to  8 
per  cent,  of  the  surface  is  irrigated,  an  improvement  much  more  rarely 
found  further  east. 

In  this  exclusive  cultivation  of  grain,  which  has  been  the  fixed  idea  of 
Italian  agriculture  for  some  years  past,  cattle  are  only  taken  into  ac- 
count for  the  needs  of  labor  and  manure.  As  a  food  supply  the  ox  has 
had,  until  recently,  no  practical  importance,  costing  too  much  for  the 
consumption  of  the  labor  alike  in  town  and  country,  and  finding  but  a 
limited  demand  for  the  few  who  could  afford  such  luxury  in  the  towns. 
By  the  rural  laborer  it  was  used  at  rare  festivals  only,  and  cases  are 
cited  of  contadini  who  asserted  that  they  had  never  tasted  meat.  The 
growing  international  demand  shows  its  effects  so  far  only  in  those  dis- 
tricts where  cattle  production  is  a  necessary  resource,  and  there  is  found 
in  passing  from  the  highlands  to  the  bottom  valley  a  regular  decrease 
of  stock  for  a  given  area,  four  oxen  being  the  average  in  the  one  case 
on  a  farm  of  15  to  30  acres,  while  in  the  lower  plain  the  same  number 
serves  for  one  of  .40  to  55  acres.  Here  the  only  commercial  product 
looked  for  is  the  sale  of  the  calves,  each  cow  bringing  in  this  way  an 
average  gain  of  120  lires=$24,  and  the  calf,  if  not  sold  at  the  teat,  must 
get  his  living  on  roadsides  and  ditches ;  if  sold  younger  he  brings  only 
$15,  and  if  better  fed  he  is  still  less  profitable,  so  that  the  average  re- 
mains about  the  same. 

In  the  same  transit  from  north  to  south,  and  from  hill  to  plain,  takes 
place  a  gradual  change  of  races,  the  Tyrolese,  Swiss,  and  all  their  mix- 
tures giving  way  to  the  Podolian,  which  here  balances  other  types,  and 
further  on  along  the  lower  rivers  and  coast,  and  it  may  be  said  in  the 
rest  of  Italy  south  of  the  Po,  is  the  exclusive  race  of  the  country. 

CATTLE  IN  THE  PROVINCE   OF  PADUA. 

This  province  is  in  every  way  the  heart  of  the  Venetian  terra-firma, 
and  its  agriculture  best  represents  the  state  of  progress  in  the  region. 
Its  situation  between  plain  and  mountain  gives  an  excellent  average  of 
soil.  Superior  wealth  and  culture  render  it  more  open  to  the  possibil- 
ities of  improvement,  and  the  agrarian  interests  of  the  country  at  large 
gravitate  here  as  to  their  natural  center.  The  city  of  Padua  is  the  prin- 
cipal cattle  market  of  the  surrounding  provinces,  and  their  breeding  in- 
terests owe  their  prosperity  in  part  to  its  neighborhood.  The  province 
is  the  best  stocked  of  the  territory,  possessing  37  head  to  the  square  kilo- 
meter, while  the  general  average  is  but  25.  In  the  northern  part  of  the 
province  breeding  and  fattening  for  slaughter  is  pursued  as  a  special 


348  CATTLE  AND  DAIEY  FARMING. 

industry,  and  to  a  degree  of  system  and  perfection  not  attempted  in 
any  other  part  of  the  country.  The  district  of  Cittadella  in  particular 
is  reputed  for  its  products,  and  uses  every  art  to  maintain  their  quality. 
Mention  has  been  made  of  the  improved  character  of  the  cattle  industry 
in  the  valley  of  theBrentaas  it  descends  toward  the  province  of  Padua, 
from  Bassano,  which  is  already  a  center  of  some  importance ;  here,  beyond 
the  confine,  is  its  culminating  point.  The  district  is  not  exceptionally  fer- 
tile, and  portions  of  it  toward  the  west  are  wasted  by  the  gravel  of  the 
Brenta.  Around  Cittadella,  in  the  center,  it  is  calcareous,  argillaceous, 
with  a  calcareous  subsoil,  is  tolerably  well  irrigated,  and  produces  good 
forage.  The  western  border,  argillaceous,  calcareous,  silicious,  is  more 
perfectly  irrigated,  and  the  forage  is  considered  superior.  The  remaining 
surface  to  the  north  and  east  is  fair  vegetable  soil  for  every  cultivation, 
but  with  a  rather  porous  substratum.  To  the  extreme  south  and  south- 
west, where  clay  predominates  both  above  and  below,  the  land  is  espe- 
cially good  for  rice  and  forage.  The  latest  statistics  give  11,262  head  of 
cattle,  with  a  rate  of  1  animal  to  2.6  acres ;  2  in  every  10  are  reserved 
for  slaughter.  From  400  to  1,300  animals  are  fattened  here  annually, 
out  of  3,000,  the  estimated  number  for  the  province. 

HOW  CATTLE  ARE  FATTENED  IN  PADUA. 

The  number  of  cattle  enumerated  as  belonging  to  the  district  are  here 
of  no  moment,  as  a  certain  quantity  are  purchased  for  fattening  from 
abroad.  The  treatment  adopted  most  usually  to  attain  the  result  in 
the  shortest  and  most  economical  way  is  thus  described:  It  should  be 
premised  that  all  practicians  do  not  make  it  a  point  to  bring  their  prod- 
ucts to  a  point  of  extreme  obesity,  and  notable  differences  in  this  re- 
spect may  be  seen  among  animals  offered  in  the  market.  With  this 
qualification,  the  following  is  the  method  adopted  by  the  most  skillful 
and  experienced  breeders  to  arrive  at  a  moderate  result  of  weight  and 
volume : 

In  winter,  when  fresh  forage  is  wanting,  the  animals,  with  an  average 
of  300  kilograms  (pounds  660),  after  several  days  of  entire  repose,  with 
ordinary  treatment,  are  bled,  in  case  their  coat,  by  its  want  of  softness 
and  luster  or  any  other  symptom,  should  indicate  the  necessity.  This 
being  done,  they  are  submitted  to.  a  regular  and  special  regime,  being 
fed  with  fine  rich  hay,  clover,  or  the  like.  This  is  continued  from  one 
to  two  months,  as  the  animals  show  more  or  less  readiness  to  gain  flesh. 
After  this  they  are  served  with  a  ration  of  Indian  corn  shucks,  softened 
in  boiling  water  and  sprinkled  with  linseed  meal,  in  quantity,  11  to  13 
pounds  a  day.  During  four  months  of  this  treatment  two  beeves  con- 
sume about  3,520  pounds  of  choice  forage  and  1,100  pounds  of  linseed 
oil-cake,  and  attain  a  weight  of  1,870  pounds.  In  the  summer  much 
the  same  method  is  followed,  using,  however,  fresh  forage,  such  as  hay, 
grass  in  general,  clover,  medic,  and  the  like,  the  oil  cake  being  omitted. 
Use  is  also  made  of  the  green  tops  of  Indian  corn,  and  of  mulberry 
leaves,  provided  these  last  have  not  been  touched  by  frost,  and  thus 
rendered  unwholesome  for  the  animals.  This  summer  treatment  lasts 
nearly  as  long,  with  about  the  same  cost  and  the  same  economical  re- 
sult, as  the  winter  treatment. 

To  obtain  beeves  of  still  higher  quality  the  whole  secret  consists  in 
prolonging  the  above  treatment,  and  those  who  desire  extra  fine  prod- 
ucts keep  the  animals  on  regime  as  long  as  six  or  seven  months  or 
more.  In  such  cases  a  pair  of  beeves  will  consume  as  much  as  5,280 
pounds  of  forage  and  3,300  pounds  of  oil-cake,  reaching  a  weight  of 
2,420  pounds. 


ITALY.  349 

I  have  alluded  to  the  race  of  animals  preferred  here  for  fattening; 
generally  and  constantly  the  Tyrolese  are  thought,  beyond  comparison, 
better  both  for  labor  and  slaughter  in  this  region.  The  so-called  Fel- 
brini  or  Bellonisi  are  purchased,  but  relatively  few,  while  the  native 
stock,  Pugliese,  stand  lowest;  without  doubt  there  are  reasons  for  this, 
drawn  from  long  experience.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  in  general  here, 
in  opposition  to  the  usage  of  other  parts  of  the  province,  neither  in  the 
forage  nor  otherwise  is  the  least  particle  of  salt  ever  given  to  cattle; 
that  they  are  curried  and  cleansed  of  every  kind  of  filth,  and  their  coats 
kept  as  lustrous  as  possible;  that  the  stable  is  never  entirely  closed 
even  in  winter,  in  the  belief  that  a  constant  supply  of  fresh  air'is  indis- 
pensable to  the  animals.  It  is  remarked  that  they  succeed  better  in 
winter,  as  well  in  the  quantity  of  flesh  as  in  its  flavor. 

The  usual  practice  of  speculators  in  this  industry  is  to  content  them- 
selves with  the  moderate  result  of  four  or  five  months  of  the  above 
treatment,  the  profits  of  the  operation  diminishing  with  a  farther  out- 
lay ;  there  exists,  however,  a  sort  of  ambition  with  certain  individuals 
to  carry  their  products  to  the  utmost  perfection,  even  with  lessened  gain, 
and  this  emulation  has  done  much,  doubtless,  to  maintain-the  singular 
reputation  of  the  locality,  clue  in  part  also  to  the  special  quality  of  the 
forage.  This  is  generally  asserted,  though  no  explanation  is  found  of 
the  superiority  claimed. 

A  report  from  the,  intendant  of  one  of  the  great  proprietary  families 
of  the  region  makes  a  higher  estimate.  After  stating  the  methods  prac- 
ticed in  his  neighborhood  (sometimes  much  the  same  as  those  mentioned 
above)  he  continues : 

The  animal  to  bo  fattened  should  "be  neither  too  young  nor  to  old,  say  from  six  to 
eight  years ;  his  live  weight  at  tbo  moment  of  putting  under  treatment 'is  commonly 
from  1,100  to  1,320  pounds.  In  three  months  he  is  at  half -flesh,  but  to  put  him  in  full 
condition,  after  these  three  mouths  on  green  food,  three  months  more  are  necessary 
on  dry  forage. 

During  the  three  months  of  green  feeding  no  dry  forage  is  given ; 
grass  alone  with  tops  and  shucks  of  Indian  corn,  &c.,  and  two  daily 
drafts  of  warm  water,  with  1  kilogram  of  oil-cako  (2.2  pounds).  After- 
ward he  receives  about  33  pounds  of  dry  forage  divided  into  three 
rations,  changing  the  quality  at  each  meal;  the  hay  should  be  of  the 
first  mowing;  the  oil-cake  drafts  to  be  continued  with  an  addition  of 
17  J  pounds  of  oil-cake.  The  shucks  in  these  last  three  months  should 
be  peeled  and  dried  and  given  morning  and  evening,  about  4£  pounds  at 
a  time. 

An  animal  well  fattened  gains  an  addition  of  about  one-half  his  orig- 
inal weight,  attaining  to  from  1,G50  to  1,980  pounds ;  the  dead  weight  is 
calculated  at  about  30°  less.  Attention  should  be  paid  to  the  habits  and 
temperament  of  the  animal,  perfect  cleanliness  of  animal  and  stall, 
abundance  of  litter,  and  constant  ventilation,  however  cold  the  weather, 
regular  currying  after  each  meal,  and  after  the  draft,  fresh  water  to  his 
thirst. 

Differences  of  opinion  exist  among  specialists  in  regard  to  the  neces- 
sity of  salt  as  an  element  of  diet;  practically,  it  seems  immaterial  here, 
owing,  perhaps,  to  the  nature  of  the  forage,  which  in  certain  situations 
is  known  to  absorb  a  considerable  quantity  of  salt  in  its  growth.  A 
strong  prejudice  exists,  among  peasant  breeders  principally,  against 
currying  the  animals  while  in  process  of  fattening,  under  the  persuasion 
that  every  disturbance  of  the  cuticle  interferes  with  their  digestion,  and 
particularly  with  the  formation  of  suet;  the  substitute  being  to  brush 
the  back  and  head,  around  and  between  the  horns,  with  a  broom  or 


350  CATTLE  AND  DAIKY  FAEMING. 

coarse  wisp  of  straw,  an  operation  supposed  to  be  specially  agreeable 
to  the  animal,  and  thus  to  improve  his  appetite  and  digestion.  The 
story  is  told  of  an  illiterate  proprietor,  noted  for  his  excellent  products, 
often  found  in  his  stable  extended  between  a  pair  of  beeves  and  indus- 
triously scratching  their  backs  to  excite  their  appetites. 

Together  with,  or  in  substitution  for,  the  liriseed-cake,  the  refuse  of 
various  other  oily  plants  is  used,  especially  the  colza,  said  to  be  very 
nearly  equal  to  linseed  as  food  for  cattle.  Other  plants  of  the  same  na- 
ture are  hemp,  poppy,  cotton,  sesame,  &c. ;  they  are  all  valuable  for 
manure  and  often  so  used.  It  is  asserted  that  after  serving  as  food 
for  animals  they  are  no  less  useful,  the  fertilizing  elements  passing 
through  the  animal  after  serving  their  purpose  of  nutrition.  (Liebig.) 
Little  or  no  recourse  is  made  to  roots  for  cattle-feeding  in  this  district, 
and  the  extremely  scanty  production  would  hardly  furnish  the  supply. 
The  linseed  cake  is  considered  equivalent  as  food  to  rather  more  than 
twice  its  weight  of  hay.  While  the  general  practice  of  breeders  gives 
the  preference  to  this  particular  plant,  it  is  supposed  that  cotton  seed, 
if  available,  might  surpass  it.  Mention  has  also  been  made  of  mulberry 
leaves  as  a  favorite  article  of  food. 

Primitive  ensilage. — In  the  vine-growing  districts,  together  with  the 
fallen  vine  leaves,  is  commonly  used  the  refuse  of  the  wine  press,  the 
considerable  residue  of  alcohol  remaining  being  an  excellent  stimulant 
for  fattening,  though  injurious  in  ordinary  food.  The  mode  of  prepara- 
tion is  as  follows :  A  round  excavation  in  the  earth,  about  2  meters 
deep  and  wide,  is  filled  with  alternate  layers  20  centimeters  (=8  inches) 
thick  (on  a  bottom  layer  of  leaves)  of  "  graspa  n  or  press  refuse,  and  vine 
and  mulberry  leaves,  pressed  down  as  tightly  as  possible,  and  covered 
with  a  "  capello  "  or  conical  mass  of  earth,  care  being  taken  to  draw  a 
ridge  of  earth  around  the  brink  to  prevent  rain  or  snow  from  penetrat- 
ing. The  mass  is  then  left  to  ferment,  and  watched,  to  fill  any  crevices 
in  the  coyer  of  earth  as  it  dries.  In  about  forty  days  fermentation  is 
completed,  and  the  product  is  then  given  to  the  animals,  which,  after  a 
first  hesitation,  become  extravagantly  fond  of  it,  and  the  dose  has  to  be 
regulat'ed. 

•  FOOD  ANALYSES. 

It  is  always  observed  that  an  animal  fattens  in  longer  or  shorter  time 
according  to  the  origin  of  his  forage ;  for  instance,  with  the  hay  mowed 
here  at  Bolzonella,  eight  months  are  required  for  full  flesh ;  with  that 
of  Citadella,  six  months ;  with  that  of  Belvedere  and  Eosa,  four  months 
suffice. 

A  rough  analysis  of  the  hay  grown  near  Citadelia  gives  for  one  hun- 
dred parts  of  hay: 

Azotated  substances,  8.14,  or  digestible  matter,  58.'23. 
Carbonated  substances,  43.63,  or  indigestible  matter,  27.18. 
Ashes,  6.16,  or  water,  14.19. 

The  composition  of  colza  compared  to  linseed  is  as  follows : 


Constituents. 

Colza. 

Linseed. 

28.08 

28.0 

9  5 

10  0 

Hydratcd  carburets     .........................      ...................... 

24.3 

31.o 

Woodlibcr                                      ... 

15  8 

11.0 

7.4 

7.0 

15.0 

14.7 

ITALY.  351 

HOUSING  CATTLE  IN  PADUA. 

Breeders  complain  that  the  principal  obstacle  to  fattening  cattle  up 
to  the  highest  point  is  the  impossibility  of  obtaining  remuneration,  the 
meat  finding  no  sale  beyond  a  certain  price,  which  varies  little  for  all 
classes  of  product,  while  in  England  every  quality  has  its  price,  thus 
gratifying  the  fastidious  taste  of  the  rich,  and  bringing  animal  food 
within  the  reach  of  a  large  population  to  whom  in  Italy  it  is  now  for- 
bidden. It  is  the  construction  and  management  of  stables  which  seem 
most  in  need  of  improvement  here  at  present.  Where  there  is  any  solid 
construction  it  is  a  model  of  centuries  gone  and  often  dates  as  far  back. 
In  the  southern  part  of  this  and  in  contiguous  provinces  this  may  be 
tolerated,  with  the  dry  and  equable  climate,  and  the  race  of  cattle  proof 
to  hardship  and  capable  of  living  in  the  open  air  without  injury,  though 
with  more  care  they  gain  at  once  in  appearance  and. condition,  and  in 
reality  the  stall  is  here  more  a  convenience  for -purposes  of  order  and 
special  regimen  than  a  necessity  for  shelter.  So  that  improvement  in 
this  respect  will  be  slow  in  spite  of  the  exportations  of  progressists,  with 
whom  it  is  rather  a  favorite  theme  latterly.  A  few  wealthy  proprietors 
have  constructed  stables  with  all  the  modern  requisites,  but  there  isxiio 
instance  of  any  such  improvement  for  industrial  purposes.  As  might  be 
expected  the  best  general  average  is  found  in  the  neighborhood  of  Padua 
and  Cittadella,  The  usual  plan  is  that  described  above  in  speaking  of 
the  cow-houses  of  Yicenza. 

DAIRYING  IN  PADUA. 

The  dairy  industry  is  entirely  insignificant  5  in'  some  districts  it  is 
wanting  altogether;  elsewhere  it  is  confined  to  the  needs  of  the  house- 
hold or  village.  In  the  districts  of  Cittadella  alone  statistical  reports 
mention,  besides  six  associate  dairies,  three  families  as  producing  small 
quantities  for  commerce ;  they  prepare  principally  soft  cheeses  for  the 
daily  consumption  of  Padua. 

The  climate  of  the  province  is  gentle  and  equable ;  separated  from 
the  lagoon  only  by  the  narrowest  portion  of  that  of  Venice,  it  is  in  the 
same  atmospheric  conditions,  with  only  the  slight  difference  that,  being 
entirely  inland,  the  moderating  effect  of  the  sea  is  less  sensible,  the 
summer  heats  and  the  cold  of  winter  being  rather  more  marked. 

The  elevation  of  the  city  observatory  is  93.6  feet  above  the  sea.  The 
temperature  rarely  exceeds  32°  or  33°  C.  or  falls  below  3°  0.,  with  a  me- 
dium of  148.°  C.  This  is  the  ordinary  year  and  a  fair  average  for  the 
province.  Its  lower  portions  sink  into  tjio  deep  valley  of  the  Brenta 
and  Adige,  and  assimilate  in  character  to  the  adjoining  province  of 
Eovigo. 

CATTLE  IN  THE  PROVINCE   OF    EOVIGO. 

Lying  between  the  parallel  courses  of  two  great  rivers,  the  Adige 
and  the  Po,  probably  the  latest  of  all  alluvial  formations,  still  disputed 
by  the  water  courses  and  the  sea,  this  province  forms  a  broader  region 
set  apart  by  nature  from  the  districts  which  it  divides,  with  a  topog- 
raphy and  an  agriculture  of  its  own.  With  most  of  its  surface  be- 
low the  level  of  the  rivers,  which  intersect  it  in  every  part,  and  liable 
also  to  invasion  from  the  reflux  of  the  tides  driven  by  contrary  winds, 
it  must  therefore  he  defended  with  constant  vigilance.  In  portions 
drainage  is  almost  impossible,  and  these  are  still  left  for  salt  marshes 
and  meadows,  in  parts  well  reclaimed  and  defended  5  the  soil,  a  deep 


•352  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

alluvion,  interrupted  by  intercolated  beds  of  sand,  peat,  and  gravel,  is 
of  exuberant  fertility,*  and  is  occupied  by  an  unsparing  cultivation. 
Tbis  exclusive  attention  to  plant  products,  with  the  prolonged  heats 
that  scorch  neglected  wastes  of  meager  pasture  between  the  frequent 
inundations,  offer  poor  conditions  for  pastoral  industry.  Rovigo,  one 
of  the  most  elevated  spots  of  the  region,  is  27  J  feet  above  the  sea;  the 
medium  temperature  is  15°  C.,  with  a  maximum  of  33°  .7  O.,  and  a 
minimum  of  3.7  and  a  rainfall  of  0.80.  Nature  has  furnished  a  race  of 
cattle  suited  to  such  congenial  conditions,  and  provided  for  their  sub- 
sistence on  the  tracts  of  undralned  land  covered  with  canes,  rushes,  and 
marsh  grasses  along  the  sea-side  and  tide-water  canals.  The  Pugliese 
exists  and  thrives  here  to  the  exclusion  of  other  races,  as  well  as  in 
the  lowest  districts  of  the  provinces  of  Padua  and  Venice.  The  noted 
agronomic,  Professor  Zanelli,  mentions  this  type  of  animals  as  follows : 

Along  both  batiks  of  the  Po,  descending  from  Mantua  to  the  plains  of  Padua,  and 
Polesiue  (Rovigo),  we  find  a  race  of  animals  of  labor,  domesticated  in  the  region, 
which  it  is  impossible  to  confound  with  other  types— oxen  of  tall  and  middle  stature, 
more  thick-set  than  the  ordinary  Hungarian  breed,  and  distinguished  by  some  with 
the  name  of  Pugliese.  Their  special  marks  are  the  coat  of  gray'or  light  grayish,  with 
small  black  lines  on  the  eyebrow,  lips,  and  edge  of  the  ear;  long  and  sharp  projecting 
horns  give  them  rather  a  savage  aspect.  The  shoulders  are  extremely  developed  in 
comparison  with  the  haunches,  with  the  point  of  the  shoulder  abnormally  high  and 
pronounced,  a  conformation  well  suited  for  a  draft  animal.  This  race  has  the  ad- 
vantage of  being  perfectly  acclimated  in  these  low  and  marshy  plains,  where  the 
pasture  is  often  of  the  most  inferior  quality,  is  robust  and  tenacious  at  work,  for 
which  cows  and  oxen  are  employed  without  distinction. 

So  that  this  animal,  descending  with  the  barbarian  invaders  from  the 
steppes  of  the  ancient  Sarmatia  (Bos  primigenus),  and  now,  by  the  con- 
sent of  all  authorities,  diffused  throughout  the  country  from  Loinbardy 
to  Sicily,  is  the  proper  Italian  ox.  He  has  been  mentioned  above  as 
the  inhabitant  of  Friuli ;  it  is  equally  certain  that  the  great  oxen  of 
Komaqua,  the  half  savage  herds  of  the  Koman  Campagna,  and  the 
cream-colored  cattle  of  Tuscany,  are  of  the  same  stock  with  the  Pugliese 
of  the  Lower  Po.  The  race  in  Piedmont  attains  extraordinary  dimensions. 
In  a  report  to  Government  are  cited  measurements  of  cattle  three  years 
old  existing  there ;  oxen  of  G  feet  4  inches  and  G  feet  G  inches,  and  a 
cow  of  5  feet  G  inches  in  height. 

Here  their  height  rarely  exceeds  5.G  to  G  feet,  and  their  yield  of  meat 
is  always  inferior  to  that  of  races  bred  for  slaughter,  as  well  as  of  the 
Tyrolese  which,  besides,  fatten  more  readily.  On  the  other  hand  the 
type  is  susceptible  of  great  improvement  under  favorable  conditions, 
and  a  certain  number  of  breeders  here  and  in  Eomaqua  maintain  that  it 
is  the  one  best  suited  to  the  country.  This  may  be  true  for  the  region 
now  under  consideration  as  well  as  for  the  rude  husbandry  and  burning 
climate  of  Southern  Italy,  but  under  ordinary  conditions  of  climate 
and  cultivation  in  Europe,  the  controversy  is  practically  decided  by  the 
choice  of  the  breeders  of  Cittadella  and  wherever  else  superior  cattle  are 
required  for  industrial  profit. 

There  can  hardly  be  said  to  exist  any  management  deserving  atten- 
tion after  the  elaborate  methods  followed  in  more  advanced  regions  and 
described  above.  The  ordinary  practice  is  to  leave  the  animals  to  find 
their  subsistence  on  the  coast  lowlands,  or  otherwise  to  feed  them  on 
the  indifferent  products  of  these  same  pastures,  at  most  shutting  them  in 
for  the  night  in  the  huts  of  cane  and  thatch,  which  serve  for  stables  in 
many  localities.  When  fattening  is  required  they  receive  the  choicer 
forage  grown  promiscuously  with  the  corn  on  small  spaces  of  the  arable 
land  of  the  region. 


ITALY.  353 

In  the  western  and  slightly  more  elevated  division  of  the  province, 
toward  Lendinara,  where  forage  cultivation  is  somewhat  more  extended, 
occupying  from  one-fifth  to  one-tenth  of  the  surface  according  to  locali- 
ties, with  a  yield  of  70  to  80  quintals  to  the  hectare,  the  animal  improves 
greatly  and  is  reported  to  give,  without  taking  into  account  the  cost  of 
land  and  forage,  10  to  12  per  cent,  on  his  purchase  price ;  in  the  low- 
land of  Kovigo  never  more  than  5  per  cent. 

Here  there  is  also  a  trifling  fabrication  of  cheese  and  butter  for  do- 
mestic use,  limited,  however,  by  the  fear  of  stinting  the  calves,  which 
are  the  principal  care  and  reliance  of  the  farmer. 

In  this  region  some  steps  of  improvement  are  made  in  the  construc- 
tion of  stables,  a  few  of  a  better  description  having  been  introduced 
by  the  wealthier  proprietors  to  replace  older  ones  fallen  into  decay. 
The  greater  number,  however,  are  still  reported  to  maintain  the  pre- 
vailing aspect  of  neglect  and  rusticity. 

CATTLE  IN  THE  DISTRICT  OF  VENICE. 

Of  the  region  in  the  immediate  dependence  of  the  city  little  remains 
to  be  said;  its  various  districts  form  so  many  appendages  to  the  dif- 
ferent provinces  which  incircle  it  and  share  the  character  of  their  rural 
life.  Extremely  fertile  to  the  north,  where  it  consists  of  the  finer  sedi- 
ment of  the  Piave,  it  is  stocked  with  the  mixture  of  Austrian  and  Friv- 
lona  cattle  which  stock  the  adjoining  districts  of  Udine  and  Treviso. 
The  portions  bordering  the  lagoon  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of 
Venice  are  occupied  by  cows  kept  expressly  for  the  milk  supply  of  the 
place,  almost  entirely  of  the  Bellunese  breed ;  indifferent  milkers,  but 
hardy  and  not  fastidious  in  their  nourishment.  Some  attempts  have 
been  made  to  introduce  Swiss  cows  into  this  group,  but  on  account  of 
the  objectionable  quality  of  the  water  and  forage  they  did  not  answer 
expectations. 

The  lower  border  of  the  lagoon,  including  Chioggia,  is  for  all  agricult- 
ural purposes  a  part  of  the  low  land  of  Eovigo,  the  Polesiue  just  de- 
scribed, and  contains  the  same  exclusive  stock  of  Pugliese  cattle,  though 
in  number  insufficient  for  the  extended  tracts  of  natural  pasturage  now 
utilized  by  large  herds  of  mountain  cattle  from  Belluno,  which  find 
here  a  cheap  subsistence  for  the  winter.  In  all  this  region  no  dairy  in- 
dustry is  ever  attempted,  the  native  cows  being  used  only  for  labor, 
and  the  scanty  supply  of  milk  and  butter  needed  for  home  use  fur- 
nished by  the  few  cows  of  other  races  bred  or  imported  for  the  purpose. 

EFFECTS  OF    THE    ITALIAN  CLIMATE  AND    HERBAGE    ON    IMPORTED 

CATTLE. 

It  is  significant  for  the  object  of  the  present  inquiry  that  in  every 
part  of  Northern  Italy  the  fabrication  of  dairy  products  as  an  industry 
is  only  carried  on  with  the  aid  of  imported  races.  The  Bellunese  are  a 
domesticated  branch  of  Tyrolese,  the  milch  cows  of  Vicenza  and  the 
seven  communes  are  almost  entirely  Swiss,  and  both  groups  are  such  in- 
different milk-givers  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  bring  their  product 
into  general  or  even  local  commerce  without  the  advantage  of  mountain 
pastures  at  trifling  cost.  The  Lombard  dairymen,  it  is  said,  find  it  more 
profitable  to  import  Swiss  cows  directly  than  to  depend  on  crossing  tho 
breed,  and  it  has  been  seen  that  the  animals  imported  fall  off  immedi- 
ately, so  that  the  yield  of  milk  never  approaches  that  of  a  Swiss  pasture. 

All  these  facts  point  to  a  radical  difference  of  local  conditions,  and 
tbe  effect  of  this  difference  may  bo  traced  progressively.  In  leaving 
H.  Ex.  51- — 23 


354  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

the  moist  climate  and  fresh  pastures  of  England  and  Scotland  every 
one  may  observe  the  dryer  and  more  concentrated  quality,  as  well  as 
the  darker  color,  of  French  beef  and  mutton,  though  not  inferior  in  fla- 
vor. The  verdure  of  the  country  shows  the  same  variation ;  both  have 
felt  the  long  dry  summer. 

In  Italy  this  change  is  exaggerated;  prolonged  heat  in  summer  and 
dry  cold  in  winter  are  the  rule.  Luxuriant  pastures  in  hill  or  valley 
are  rare,  and  keep  their  freshness  but  a  moment.  Mountain  ranges  and 
spurs  occupy  much  of  the  surface;  land  is  divided  into  the  smallest 
parcels ;  horses  too  few  and  precious  to  be  employed  in  cultivation ;  in- 
tensive agriculture  is  little  known,  and  its  introduction  can  only  be 
the  work  of  many  years.  Until  then  the  race  of  cattle  must  be  adapted 
to  all  uses,  principally  to  labor,  and  subsidiarily  to  slaughter  or  dairy 
production ;  and  even  then  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  climate  and  vege- 
tation could  offer  a  congenial  home  for  the  ultra-refined  and  developed 
animals  of  more  favored  regions.  Attempts  to  naturalize  them,  made 
with  all  the  precautions  and  liberality  of  scientific  experiment,  have  not 
so  far  succeeded. 

THE   OX  OF   THE   COUNTRY. 

In  the  Podolian  ox  the  country  possesses  a  type  capable  of  support- 
ing its  mediocre  conditions  of  existence,  and  answering  its  principal  re- 
quirements; sober,  robust,  and  nearly  equal  to  the  horse  in  the  rapidity 
of  his  pace  in  labor  or  journey,  he  demands  neither  care  nor  shelter. 
To  correct  his  defects  of  form  and  temperament  the  other  half-Italian- 
ited  race  of  the  Tyrol  seems  specially  fitted ;  indolent,  slow,  and  massive 
in  his  native  region,  he  loses  the  excess  of  these  characteristics  in  chang- 
ing his  habitat,  while  retaining  his  precocity  and  readiness  to  fatten. 
The  influence  of  climate  is  singular  manifested  in  its  effects  in  these  ex- 
tremes of  race  character,  which,  gaining  and  losing,  respectively,  by  the 
change,  tend  to  a  common  medium  of  good  qualities.  The  Podolian, 
however,  is  the  proper  and  universal  Italian  ox,  and  in  view  of  the  extra- 
ordinary modifications  already  noted  of  the  same  type,  it  is  difficult  to 
assign  a  limit  to  his  capability  of  amelioration. 

SUITABILITY  OF  ITALIAN  CATTLE  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Whether  one  or  other  of  these  races  would  be  desirable  for  importa- 
tion to  the  United  States  would  depead  on  the  character  and  the  ag- 
riculture of  the  region  in  which  the  animals  should  be  implanted. 
Neither  possesses  the  highly  developed  special  qualities  that  are  sought 
for  in  the  improved  cultivation  of  the  older  States.  If,  however,  the 
precocity  and  solidity  of  the  Tyrolese  were  considered  an  acquisition, 
these  are  found  at  their  strongest  in  the  valleys  of  the  Upper  Adige, 
toward  Meran,  the  native  home  of  the  race.  The  type  should  be  chosen 
there,  and  for  these  qualities  alone ;  neither  this  nor  any  other  race  of 
these  regions  having  any  value  for  dairy  purposes  to  merit  attention. 

The  hardy  and  indefatigable  Podolian  or  Pugliese  might  render  use- 
ful service  in  the  trying  climate  and  difficult  cultivation  of  less  fertile 
and  less  advanced  parts  of  the  country,  as,  for  instance,  in  the  lowlands 
of  the  Gulf  States,  in  the  wild-sage  region  of  the  great  plains,  or  the 
barren  stretches  of  Lower  California  and  New  Mexico,  and,  according  to 
the  special  requirements  of  the  situation,  there  would  be  large  room  for 
choice  among  the  several  varieties  of  the  race  which  stock  the  different 
regions  of  Italy. 


ITALY. 


355 


PRICES    OF  ITALIAN  CATTLE. 

In  regard  to  the  quantity  of  cattle  at  present  in  the  country  and  their 
price,  they  are  reported  to  be  scarce  and  dear  in  all  parts  of  Italy  and 
Venice,  as  well  on  account  of  the  recent  inundations  as  of  the  increasing 
demand,  foreign  and  home.  France  and  Germany  require  a  constant 
supply,  and  for  several  years  the  Parisian  market  has  been  largely 
supplied  with  Italian  beef. 

Beeves  of  superior  quality,  live  weight,  cost  from  $15  to  $1G  the 
quintal,  and  this  price  is  general  throughout  the  region.  The  animal 
generally  averages  six  quintals,  and  yields  50  per  cent,  net  of  meat. 
Cows  bring  about  the  same  price,  and  never  less  than  $14;  at  half-flesh 
the  price  is  55  to  00  francs,  which  equals  $11  to  $12. 

TRANSPORTATION   OF  ITALIAN   CATTLE   TO   THE   UNITED   STATES. 

It  is  difficult  to  obtain  data  as  to  the  cost  and  facilities  of  transport 
to  the  United  States,  the  case  never  having  before  occurred.  The  best 
route  would  be  by  sea  altogether,  as  I  am  assured  that  animals  suffer 
more  in  the  railway  journey  to  Havre  than  in  crossing  the  Atlantic. 
The  General  Navigation  Company  (Italian),  with  a  line  to  New  York 
and  transshipment  at  Palermo,  make  their  voyage  from  here  to  New 
York  in  twenty-five  days,  and  state  a  price  (approximate)  of  480  francs 
($96)  per  head,  but  better  terms  could  be  made  according  to  number  of 
animals.  Each  animal  would  require  about  22  pounds  of  hay  per  day, 
and  for  the  passage  550,  which,  at  71  cents  per  quintal,  equals  $3,50, 
which  with  $96  for  transport,  equals  $99.50.  The  passage  of  the  neces- 
sary keepers  would  be  gratuitous. 

McWALTEE  B.  NOYES, 

Consul. 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Venice,  November  24,  1883. 


Size,  weight,  and  product  of  horned  cattle  in  the  Venetian  territory. 


iNTame  of  breed. 

Habitat. 

Annual 
averag3 
pounds 
of  milk. 

Milk  to 
pound 
of 
butter. 

Milk  to 
pound 
of 
cheese. 

Size  at 
maturity. 

Live 
weight. 

Cow. 

Ox. 

Cow. 

Ox. 

Pu^licse 

Udine,  Rovigo.Padua,  Vicenza, 
Verona,  Venice. 
Udine,  Vicenza,  Padua,  Verona. 
Belluno,    Padua,  Udine,  Tre- 
viso. 

Lbi. 

Lbi. 

Ft. 
4.10 

4.8 
4.8 

Ft, 
fi| 

P 

Lbs. 
935 

990 
950 

Lbs. 
1,400 

1,650 
1,500 

3,000 
2,850 

3,600 

27/3 

s»S 

25 

"iV 

Bollunese  ........ 

5chwytz 

lHontanina 

Udine                               

356  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

Breeds  of  horned  cattle  in  the  Venetian  territory,  and  their  products. 


Name  of  breed. 

A  go  at  ma- 
turity. 

Weight  of 
meat  at 
maturity. 

Color. 

Description. 

Pugliese      ..... 

Trs. 

4 

Pound  ft. 
710 

A  sli-gray,  "whitish,  tipped  with 

Thin,    liigh-shouldercd,     long- 

3 

825 

black 

limbed,    long-horned  ;    pace, 
rapid. 
Heavy,    slow,    back    straight 

Bolluncse 

24 

775 

Gray,  tipped  with  black  

rmnp     thick,     head      suiallj 
neck,,  short,  horna  short. 
Thick-set,    horns   short,  limbs 

Schwytz 

410 

Red  brown,  or  black  spotted  .  .  . 

short,  breast  broad,  depres- 
sion behind  shoulder,  preco- 
cious. 
Low,     head  small,  rnmp   high 

Montanina  ... 

Red  or  brown  

and  large,  horns  short,  bones 
light,  thighs  largs,  skin  soft. 
Undersized,  korns    and    hoofs 

amber-color,    light,    rapid, 
used  for  transport. 

Product. 

Name  of  breed. 

Origin  of  breed. 

Labor. 

Meat,  fat 
tened. 

Milk, 
per  year. 

Cheese, 
per  year. 

Pugliese  

Steppes  of  Rnasia  

Rapid    . 

Lbs. 
990 

Lbs. 

Lbs. 

Tyroleso 

Slow 

1   100 

1  000 

910 

Bolluuese        ..  . 

Belluno  and  Tvrol  ...  ... 

Good    middlin^ 

1  050 

2  350 

"07 

Schwytz  

Val  Rendana,  Tyrol  ...... 

3*  600 

262 

Italy  

Miduiiigriipid... 

Climate  and  topography  of  the  Venetian  territory. 


Locality. 

Altitude. 

Mean 
annual 
temper- 
ature. 

Summer. 

Winter. 

Mean. 

Extreme. 

Mean. 

Extreme. 

Udine  : 
Gemona         ..     ..... 

Meters. 
200 
30 

°C. 
11.1 
11.8 

°C. 
"20 
24.5 

°C. 
33.8 

°C. 

2.8 

°C. 
-15 

Cividale  

Belluno  : 
Belluno 

404 

10.3 
10.1 
6.9 

13.3 
7 
12.7 

14.2 

20.6 

31.9 

-11.9 

Auronzo  .................  ....... 

900 

35 
996 
129 

64 

16.6 
24.7 

29.6 

35.  1 
26.1 
33.2 

35 

-1.C 

-17.5 

-  5 
-18 
-  6.1 

-  6.4 

Vicenza  : 

Asia°"o  ............................ 

3.3 
3.9 

Verona  : 

San  guinetto.  ............  . 

Pa<?ua: 
Padua         .    ..     ...      . 

11 
46 

14.3 

36.7 

4.9 

11.1 

Cittadella  

Rovigo  : 

9 
2' 
1 

Venice: 
St  Dona       

Venice  and  Dolo  .................... 

3 
1.1 

12.1 

24.4 

36.7 

3.1 

-  5 

Cbioggia 

ITALY. 

Climate  and  topography  of  the  Venetian  territory — Continued. 


357 


Locality. 

Soil. 

Character. 

Composition. 

Udino  : 
Gemona    ........           . 

Siliceous,  argillaceous,  calcareous. 
Gravel,  argillaceous,  calcareous. 
Argillaceous,  calcareous,  gravel. 

Argillaceous,  calcareous. 
Calcureons,  argillaceous,  sand. 
Calcareous,  argillaceous. 

Argillaceous,  siliceous,  calcareous. 
Cretaceous,  cnlcareous. 
Cretaceous,  siliceous,  calcareous. 

Argillaceous,  calcareous,  siliceous. 
Siliceous,  argillaceous,  calcareous. 

Siliceous,  argillaceous. 
Argil  Irxeous,  calcareous,  sand. 
Argillaceous,  siliceous.  ' 

Argillaceous,  sand,  calcareous. 
Argillaceous,  saud,  peat. 
Do. 

Argillaceous. 
Argillaceous,  sand. 
Argillaceous,  sand,  peat. 

Pordenone1  ... 

Alluvial  and  gravel  ... 
do 

Cividalo    '  .  . 

Bellnno: 
Bclluno    

Alluvial 

Mountain  shelves  
do 

Auronzo 

Viccnza: 
Vicenza  

Alluvial  f>.ml  gravel.. 
Mountain  plateau  
Alluviau 

Asia  20  . 

Ushisauo 

Verona  : 
Verona  ........ 

Stnnv       

Sanguinotto  

Tad  n;i  : 

I  'ad  u.i 

Alluvial  

Cittmlclla    

Allnvini         

Piavo  

Hovi<ro  : 
IiondinftTA 

Deep  all  u  vian  

Alluvial  and  sand  
do  

Aih  io..  ........ 

Aviauo 

do 

Venice: 
Si"   Dona 

do             .... 

Verdco  and  Dolo            .               ... 

do  

do 

NOTR.  —  1  meter  ^;  3  feet  3.1  inches.    Degree  centigrade  =  1°  Fahrenheit.    O  cenli<jrailo  is  at  freezing 
point. 

358' 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

nn  and  cultivated  graces  in  the  Venetian  territory. 


Locality. 

Substratum. 

Proportion 
to  arable  soil. 

Cultivated  grasses. 

TJdiue  : 

Limestone;  in  in  gher  parts, 

| 

Medic   and  clover    most   in 

Pordenone  

gianito  and  schist. 
Gravel,  moraine  

Limestone  and  gravel  higher 

i 

mountain  grasses. 
Medic,  clover,  rye-grass. 

Belhmo  : 

granite. 
Limestone,  preen  sandstone, 

4 

marl,  and  conglomerates. 
Limestone     red     sandstone, 

1 

Auronzo  

chalk,  scaglia. 
Dolomite,  arenaceous  and  cal- 

grasses. 
Pastures  of  Phliune  alponum 

Vicenza: 
Vicenza 

careous  schist,  quartz  por- 
phyry. 

Metamorphic  liino  and  sand 

1 

agrostis,  alopecurus,  poa,  fe» 
tuca,  avena  scheuchzin,  &c. 

Clover  red  and  white  medic 

Asia^o          .     

stone,  dolerite  and   basalt 
tufa,  gravel. 
Dolomite,  red  sandstone,  chalk, 

Bassano 

basalt  tufa. 
Glacial  detritus,  tertiary  lime- 

1 

pastures. 

Verona  : 
Verona                  ........... 

stone,  basalt,  tufa,  chalk. 
Nuinolito    limestone,   chalk 

vetches. 

tufa,  ligneto,  moraine. 
San  '   limestone    conglom- 

1 

tiral  pasture. 

Pudua  : 
Padua                .  . 

erates, 
Saad   gravel   trachyte   lime- 

i 

frin. 

Cittadella  

stone,  and  conglomerates. 
Gravel,  conglomerates  ..     ... 

1 

native  grasses,  phlium,  poa, 
agrostib,    many    species    of 
vetch. 
Do 

Piava 

Rovigo: 

1 

torn  pasture. 

Adria  

clay. 
Deep  alluvial  sand  clay  peat 

consumption. 

Ariano 

alernating. 
Delta  •  clay  "ravel  peat 

clover. 

Venice  : 
San,  Dona          . 

Delta  •  clay  argillaceous  and 

i 

marsh. 

cretaceous  marl. 
Sand,  clay,  marl,  indurated 

bottom  pasture. 
Little  cultivation    waste  pas- 

Chibfgia 

clay. 
Gravel  clay  sand  peat 

ture,  bad  water. 

torn  pasture. 

BELGIUM.  359 


BELGIUM. 


CATTLE  IN  BELGIUM. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  STEUART,  OF  ANTWERP. 

In  reply  to  tine  circular  and  memoranda  calling  for  information  relative 
to  breeding  cattle  that  would  be  of  value  to  stock-breeders  in  the  United 
States,  I  have  to  regret  that  my  efforts,  both  by  personal  inquiry  and  by 
correspondence,  to  obtain  some  points  of  value  bearing  on  the  subject 
have  been  attended  with  indifferent  results,  some  of  my  letters  remaining 
unanswered. 

Belgium  offers  no  cattle  for  export,  first,  because  the  home  demand  is 
far  in  excess  of  the  supply,  and  then  because  there  is  no  race  here  suffi- 
ciently prominent  or  meritorious  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  pur- 
chasers from  the  United  States,  who  are  almost  always  present  in  the 
neighboring  kingdom  of  Holland  seeking  the  valuable  cattle  in  which 
that  country  is  so  rich. 

From  an  official  report  published  this  year  by  the  bureau  of  agricult- 
ure in.  the  department  of  the  interior  at  Brussels,  we  learn  that  for  some 
years  past  the  cattle  in  Belgium  have  shown  great  improvement,  owing  to 
the  great  care  taken  in  the  selection  of  the  breeding  stock  brought  into 
the  country  from  England  and  Holland,  and  to  the  great  attention  paid  to 
the  offspring.  They  are  well  housed,  carefully  fed,  and  every  care  taken 
in  order  to  produce  the  best  results.  The  Durham  bulls  from  England 
are  the  most  valued  and  most  in  use,  and  the  cross  from  this  race  are  very 
successful,  and  becoming  more  and  more  numerous  every  year.  In  some 
places  an  effort  has  been  made  to  preserve  and  breed  the  Durham  stock 
pure,  but  the  result  was  a  failure.  After  two  or  three  generations  they 
degenerate  so  greatly  that  the  infusion  of  new  blood  is  necessary  ;  thus, 
whilst  the  cross  is  a"great  success,  the  pure  race  will  not  thrive  in  this 
country. 

The  province  of  Antwerp  prefers  to  improve  her  stock  by  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  Dutch  race,  because  the  dairy  is  the  result  aimed  at,  and  but 
little  attention  paid  to  the  other  products.  The  cow  is  valued  only  by  her 
milk-giving  qualities,  and  for  this  purpose  the  Dutch  are  much  the  best. 

In  the  province  of  Flanders  the  great  proportion  of  the  cattle  are  of 
the  Cassel  breed,  or,  as  it  is  called  in  France  and  in  all  the  markets,  the 
Flemish  breed.  In  many  of  the  districts  more  than  half  the  cows  are  of 
this  breed,  whilst  in  other  districts  the  Durham  is  used  to  cross  with  the 
native  cows,  or  with  those  brought  in  from  Holland. 

In  the  province  of  Brabant  the  Durham  is  held  in  the  highest  esti- 
mation, but  in  the  weekly  market  held  at  Diest,  which  is  a  very  im- 
portant center  for  the  cattle  trade,  the  Holland  cattle  take  a  very  im- 
portant part. 

As  the  home  product  falls  far  short  of  the  demand  for  consumption, 
the  Government  has  interested  itself  greatly,  as  it  does  in  all  matters 
affecting  the  material  interests  of  the  Kingdom,  in  order  to  secure  the 
increase  needed,  and  at  the  same  time  to  improve  the  breed  as  much  as 
possible.  To  this  end  an  appropriation  is  made  yearly  and  expended 
by  agents  appointed  by  the  department  of  the  interior  for  the  purchase 
and  importation  of  the  best  pure-blooded  animals  suitable  for  the  pur- 
pose 5  the  purchases  are  generally  made  from  the  Durham  and  Holland 


360  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

stock,  and  these  animals  are  distributed  among  the  different  provinces 
and  sold  to  the  stock-breeders.  The  result  is  carefully  watched  and 
rewards  are  offered  to  those  who  are  able  to  show  the  best  specimens 
arising  from  judicious  care  and  attention. 

Professor  Leyder,  of  the  .Royal  Agricultural  Institute,  sends  me  a  pam- 
phlet written  by  himself  upon  the  animals  at  the  national  exposition  of 
1880,  and  in  his  written  reply  to  my  inquiries  he  says : 

None  of  our  races  have  sufficient  merit  to  attract  the  attention  of  stock-breeders; 
also  that  our  statistical  documents  are  silent  upon  the  subject  of  the  distribution  of 
cattle  races  among  the  different  provinces. 

In  his  pamphlet  he  states  that  the  demands  for  home  consumption, 
•which  the  product  is  far  from  covering,  call  for  large  importations  of 
cattle.  Since  a  dozen  years  the  excess  of  importations  over  exporta- 
tions  has  been  about  50,000  head  yearly.  Holland  contributes  most 
largely  to  this  number,  partly  of  cattle  ready  fattened  for  the  market, 
of  others  coming  to  be  fattened,  and  also  of  some  reserved  for  breeding 
purposes.  Of  the  123,201, 121,138,  and  142,480  head  of  cattle  imported, 
respectively,  in  1878,  1879,  and  1880,  there  came  from  Holland  107,008, 
100,933,  and  113,808  head. 

TRANSPORTATION  OF   CATTLE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

Although  Belgium  has  no  cattle  of  her  own  to  export  for  breeding 
purposes,  she  offers  the  best  route  of  export  from  this  part  of  the  world 
to  the  United  States.  The  White  Cross  line  of  steamers,  sailing  from 
Antwerp  to  New  York,  Boston,  and  Quebec,  are  fitted  with  the  proper 
accommodations  for  the  transport  of  cattle,  and  they  carry  a  great 
many,  principally  coming  from  Holland,  some  from  Switzerland,  but 
more  from  Belgium.  The  cattle  are  brought  to  Antwerp  by  rail  or 
water,  are  inspected  by  the  veterinary  surgeon,  and  then  placed  on 
board  of  the  steamers. 

COST  OF  TRANSPORTATION  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  agents  of  the  line  here  furnished  me  with  the  following  as  the 
rates  of  transportation,  namely :  £8  per  head  for  cows,  £7  per  head  for 
yearlings,  £6  per  head  for  calves,  including  installations,  water,  and 
feeding  for  twenty  days.  The  men  accompanying  the  cattle  for  attend- 
ance have  free  passage. 

If  no  men  accompany  the  cattle  the  steamer  provides  attendance  at 
the  rate  of  4s.  per  head.  If  shippers  provide  feed  the  price  is  £2  less 
per  head. 

JOHN  H.  STEUART, 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE,  Consul. 

Antwerp,  December  29, 1883. 


BREEDS  OF  CATTLE  IN  BELGIUM. 

REPORT  EY  CONSUL  WILSON,  OF  BRUSSELS. 

In  a  country  where  the  subdivision  of  property  is  so  great  and  the 
population  so  dense  as  in  Belgium,  the  raising  of  stock  and  the  im- 
provement of  breeds,  of  necessity,  cannot  constitute  an  important 
branch  of  agricultural  industry;  nevertheless,  within  the  last  few  years 
there  has  been  amongst  agriculturists  here  a  strong  and  persistent  effort 


BELGIUM.  361 

made  to  improve  all  animals  that  either  furnish  beef  or  dairy  products 
for  the  people;  as  a  result  of  this  effort,  it  is  doubtful  whether  there 
now  can  be  found  any  purely  indigenous  breeds  in  this  country.  There 
are,  however,  several  distinct  varieties  bred  here,  each  generally  con- 
fined to  a  particular  district  of  the  country,  characterized  by  some 
peculiar  quality  of  pasturage,  soil,  or  climatic  condition, 

THE   FURNES-AMBACHT  BREED. 

On  the  rich  plains  and  poulders  of  East  and  West  Flanders  the  pre- 
vailing type  of  cattle  is  that  known  as  the  "Furnes-Ambacht"  breed, 
distinguished  by  handsome  and  well-proportioned  forms,  short  legs, 
moderately  large,  crooked  horns,  and  usually  of  a  red  and  white  pie- 
bald color.  They  are  renowned  for  both  the  quantity  and  quality  of 
their  dairy  products  throughout  the  Kingdom. 

THE   ARDENNAISE   BREED. 

Farther  east  and  west,  on  the  slopes  and  valleys  of  the  foot-hills  of 
the  Ardennes,  where  the  soil  chiefly  consists  of  decomposed  schist- 
quartz  and  affords  a  less  abundant  yet  nutritious  herbage,  there  has 
been  bred,  almost  from  time  immemorial,  another  variety  known  as 
the  "Ardeunaise"  stock. 

This  breed  is  characterized,  when  not  crossed  with  any  other,  by  its 
red  color,  small  size,  clean,  smooth  limbs,  and  long,  sharp  horns  pro- 
jecting forwards  and  surmounting  a  head  carried  well  up,  as  though 
always  on  the  alert  against  surprise  or  danger. 

These  animals  are  not  usually  good  milkers,  but  produce  rich  and 
well-flavored  meat,  doubtless  more  or  less  resulting  from  the  character 
of  the  herbage  upon  which  they  feed  in  this  mountainous  district. 

THE   CHARLEROI  BREED. 

In  the  Herve  and  Condroz  districts,  touching  the  German  frontier  on 
the  northeast,  there  formerly  existed  a  variety  of  cattle  much  resembling 
the  Ardenuaise,  excepting  that  they  were  almost  uniformly  of  a  black 
and  white  piebald  color ;  butTwithin  the  last  few  years  the  introduction 
of  the  Shorthorns  into  these  districts  has  greatly  changed  both  their 
form  and  color,  so  that  the  pure  Condroz  race  is  now  rapidly  disappear- 
ing and  the  present  stock  of  that  region,  known  as  the  Charleroi  breed, 
taking  its  place. 

FOREIGN  AND  CROSS  BREEDS  IN  BELGIUM. 

These  three  varieties  of  cattle  are  all  that  can  now,  with  any  degree 
of  propriety,  be  denominated  native  breeds,  and  of  them  and  their 
crosses  with  the  Shorthorn  Durham,  the  Dutch  Piebald,  and  a  variety 
from  Cassel,  almost  the  entire  herds  of  the  country  are  the  progeny. 

Attracted  by  the  rapid  growth  and  splendid  forms  of  the  pure  blood 
English  Shorthorns,  the  farmers,  in  almost  every  district  of  this  King- 
dom, have  attempted  to  cultivate  them  to  the  exclusion  of  their  native 
stock,  but  with  variable  and  by  no  means  uniformly  satisfactory  re- 
sults ;  for  they  overlooked  the  facts  that  the  valley  of  the  Tees,  the  true 
home  of  the  Durham,  abounds  in  rich  pasturage  and  other  cattle  food 
to  a  degree  greatly  exceeding  most  of  the  cattle-growing  districts  of 
this  country,  and  that  the  rapid  growth  and  quick  maturity  of  this 


362  CATTLE   AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

stock  demands  a  proportionate  amount  of  special  care  and  nutritious 
food. 

Many  of  the  stock-growers  of  this  country,  after  having  spent  large 
sums  of  money  themselves,  and  having  received  handsome  subsidies 
from  the  Government  in  experimenting  with  these  cattle,  have  been 
forced  to  abandon  them  and  fall  back  upon  crosses  with  their  native 
stock,  as  more  hardy  in  constitution  and  better  adapted  to  the  food  prod- 
uce and  climatic  conditions  of  their  districts.  The  crosses  with  this 
stock,  however,  are  now  found  in  every  district  in  the  Kingdom,  and 
have  to  a  large  degree  supplanted  even  the  famous  Dutch  breed  so  long 
and  highly  esteemed  here. 

I  may  add  here  that  the  importance  given  in  this  country  to  any  one 
variety  over  the  others  above  mentioned,  chiefly  depends  upon  the  kind 
of  pasturage  and  other  food  the  department  where  they  are  found  pro- 
duces, in  connection  with  its  peculiar  agricultural  interest. 

In  the  province  of  Antwerp  the  production  of  milk  and  butter  and 
the  raising  of  vegetables  for  the  London  and  Antwerp  markets  are 
found  so  much  more  profitable  than  the  growing  of  beef  cattle,  that  the 
farmers  of  that  district  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  any  but  such 
cattle  as  produce  the  largest  amount  of  milk  upon  the  smallest  amount 
of  food,  and  for  this  they  prefer  the  pure  Dutch  cow  or  her  crosses  with 
the  Flemish  animal. 

In  the  province  of  Brabant  great  efforts  have  been  made  to  introduce 
the  pure  blood  Shorthorn  Durham,  and  for  awhile  it  was  thought  that 
this  stock  would  drive  out  all  others,  but  the  increasing  demand 
for  milk  and  butter  in  Brussels  and  its  populous  environs,  with  the 
profitable  market  they  afford  the  farmer  for  his  root  and.  vegetable 
crops  of  various  kinds  have  here,  also,  arrested  the  introduction  of 
Durhams  and  to  a  large  degree  substituted  for  them  the  small,  hardy 
Hollands  and  their  crosses,  which,  under  a  more  moderate  quantity  of 
truck  food,  yield  a  larger  amount  of  rich  milk  and  butter. 

In  the  province  of  Hainaut  all  efforts  to  introduce  the  pure  Durham 
have  failed  to  succeed.  In  a  report  of  the  agricultural  commission  of 
this  province  now  before  me  the  commission  says:  "It  is  impossible  to 
believe  that  the  prejudices  for  old  habits  and  routine  is  the  sole  cause 
of  this  result;  we  are  therefore  forced  to  believe  that  this  so  perfect 
breed  of  cattle  neither  suits  our  exigencies  nor  our  wants,  and  that  we 
must  content  ourselves  with  a  cross  with  the  native  stock  instead  of 
the  pure  Durham." 

This,  I  have  no  doubt,  is  the  opinion  of  all  stock-raisers  in  this  prov- 
ince, for,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  fancy  breeders,  the  farmers  of 
the  entire  province  cling  to  the  pure  native  or  its  cross. 

In  the  province  of  Liege  a  number  of  pure  blood  Shorthorn  bulls 
and  cows  of  a  variety  celebrated  for  its  milk  and  butter  producing 
qualities  have  been  recently  imported  from  England,  with  satisfactory 
results  thus  far,  and  it  is  thought  that  this  variety  of  exotics  may  yet 
be  found  better  adapted  to  this  district,  both  as  a  profitable  animal  for 
the  shambles  and  as  a  good  milker,  than  any  other  breed ;  but  this  I 
very  much  doubt  from  the  conflicting  testimony  I  receive. 

The  farmers  of  Lirnbourg  and  Luxembourg  are  more  devoted  to  the 
raising  of  beef  cattle  for  the  markets  of  the  country  than  to  milkers, 
and  in  these  provinces  the  Durham  crossed  with  the  native  stock  gives 
entire  satisfaction. 

The  province  of  Kamur,  from  its  topographical  features  and  the  char- 
acter of  its  soil,  is  chiefly  adapted  to  pasturage  and  to  -the  raising  oi 
beef  cattle  for  the  market,  but  the  pure  Durham,  though  in  repute 


BELGIUM.  363 

amongst  some  of  the  farmers,  requires  a  higher  degree  of  nurture  than 
the  soil  affords  and  is  giving  way  to  a  cross  with  the  Ardennaise  stock. 

CATTLE   FEEDING-  IN  BELGIUM.      - 

Alt-hough,  as  before  stated,  Belgium  is  not  to  any  considerable  degree 
a  cattle-raising  country,  the  amount  of  care  and  labor  the  small  farm- 
ers and  dairymen  bestow  upon  these  animals  is  very  great,  and  as  a 
result  they  have  succeeded,  in  many  cases,  in  bringing  their  milch  cows 
up  to  the  highest  degree  of  milk  and  butter  producing  qualities. 

Many  of  these  cows  are  stall-fed  all  the  year;  plenty  of  good  water 
and  the  food  best  adapted  to  the  production  of  rich  milk  is  supplied 
them  with  great  punctuality.  They  are  combed  and  brushed  and  their 
skin  kept  perfectly  clean ;  their  stables  are  also  models  of  cleanliness, 
and  nothing  is  left  undone  either  in  the  way  of  kind  treatment,  abun- 
dant food  and  water,  or  good  shelter,  to  bring  these  animals  up  to 
the  highest  degree  of  perfection.  Their  food  from  May  to  October  con- 
sists chiefly  of  an  abundant  supply  of  clover ;  from  October  to  January 
turnips  and  carrots  boiled  are  added  to  the  fodder,  and  from  January 
to  May  beets,  and  malt  when  it  can  be  had,  are  fed.  Clover  and  malt 
are  here  regarded  as  the  best  milk- producing  articles  of  food. 

YIELD  OF  MILK  OF  BELGIAN  COWS. 

From  the  most  reliable  information  I  can  obtain  a  good,  average  fresh 
Flemish  cow  will  yield  from  28  to  30  liters  of  milk  daily ;  a  Flemish  and 
Ardennaise  cross,  from  18  to  24,  and  a  pure  Holland  about  the  same 
quantity.  All  the  crosses  with  the  Shorthorns  may  be  set  down  as 
giving  a  fraction  less  than  these  figures  in  quantity ;  as  a  rule  their 
milk  is  richer  in  cream  and  consequently  in  butter,  but  after  the  sepa- 
ration of  the  cream  the  milk  is  left  proportionately  poor. 

MISCELLANEOUS  STATISTICS. 

The  cows  of  all  the  native  breeds  and  crosses  in  this  country  are 
considered  at  maturity  when  three  years  old,  but  bulls  and  steers,  par- 
ticularly of  Durham  crosses,  will  grow  until  they  are  four  years  old. 

In  the  subjoined  table,  marked  A,  will  be  found,  as  nearly  as  I  can  as- 
certain it  (in  the  absence  of  any  statistics  on  the  subject),  the  live  weight 
of  these  animals  at  three  years  old,  and  the  average  price  paid  per  kilo- 
gram, live  weight,  for  them  fattened  for  the  market.  The  table  marked 
B,  giving  their  size,  is  a  transcript  of  that  published  here  on  the  occa- 
sion of  the  great  national  exhibition  of  1880,  and  is  the  only  reliable  in- 
formaion  I  have  been  able  to  obtain  on  this  subject. 

IMPORTS  OF  CATTLE  INTO  BELGIUM. 

As  no  census  of  the  horned  cattle  in  this  Kingdom  has  been  made 
since  1875,  I  am  unable  to  give  a  reliable  answer  to  the  questions  in 
your  circular  as  to  the  present  number,  the  percentage  of  breeds,  and 
the  proportion  bred  for  the  butcher  and  dairy;  but  official  documents 
furnished  me  show  that  the  importation  of  cattle  into  Belgium  in  1881 
amounted  to  121,000  head,  whilst  the  exports  only  amounted  to  42,911 
head,  thus  showing  a  deficit  in  the  home  supply  for  that  year  of  78,089 
head. 

Of  the  total  number  imported  Holland  supplied  9J,OSO,  and  the 
United  States  355  head. 


364  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARM1-NG 

PRICES  OF  BELGIAN  CATTLE. 

There  were  sold  in  the  markets  and  fairs  of  the  country  in  1881, 186,- 
262  milch  cows,  at  a  mean  price  of  300  francs  per  head ;  74,065  heifers, 
at  a  mean  price  of  185  francs;  of  steers,  there  were  sold  71,014,  aver- 
aging, per  head,  366  francs ;  and  of  young  bulls,  33,431,  at  a  mean 
price  of  165  francs. 

BELGIAN  CATTLE  FOR  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

It  will  be  necessarily  inferred  from  the  prices  paid  for  the  animals  ot 
these  various  classes  in  the  open  markets  of  the  country  that  they  could 
not  have  been  of  a  superior  quality,  and  indeed  this  is  the  fact  with 
regard  to  all  horned  cattle  bred  in  this  country.  So  far  as  my  own  per- 
sonal observation  has  served  me,  I  am  convinced  that  the  farmers  of 
the  United  States  have  nothing  to  learn  from  this  country  in  the  mat- 
ter of  selective  breeding  and  the  production  of  valuable  stock  either 
for  the  shambles  or  the  dairy,  and  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  moro 
fine  bovine  specimens  of  pure  and  crossed  bloods  may  be  seen  in  a  dny 
amongst  the  farmers  of  our  Middle  and  Northwestern  States  than  can 
be  found  within  the  entire  limits  of  this  country. 

As  before  stated  the  small  farmers  and  dairymen  have  lavished  a 
great  amount  of  care  upon  their  milch  cows,  and  thus  secure  from  them 
a  large  daily  yield  of  milk;  but  I  doubt  not  that  on  every  well-man- 
aged farm  or  dairy  in  the  United  States  there  can  be  found  cows  that 
in  this  quality  will  equal  the  best  of  this  country. 

Finally,  as  a  result  of  my  personal  observation  and  all  the  informa- 
tion I  have  obtained  from  other  sources,  I  am  convinced  that  no  impor- 
tation of  milch  cows  from  this  country  could  greatly  improve  our  present 
stock,  and  as  to  beef  cattle,  I  have  seen  in  the  fields  and  stables  of  the 
farmers  of  the  United  States,  both  Durhams  and  Devons,  not  only  far 
surpassing  anything  found  in  this  country,  but  equal  to  the  finest  herds 
bred  in  England,  their  native  home.  If,  however,  notwithstanding 
these  facts,  any  of  our  farmers  feel  inclined  to  test  the  improvement 
expatriation  will  produce  on  any  of  the  stock  of  this  country,  I  would 
recommend  the  Flemish  cow  as  possessing  qualities  capable  of  a  larger 
and  moro  immediate  improvement  than  any  other  of  the  native  breeds, 
and  now  that  there  is  a  fine  line  of  steamers  plying  between  New  York 
and  Antwerp  the  experiment  need  not  necessarily  be  an  expensive  one. 

THE  EXPORT   OF  AMERICAN  BEEF   AND   BEEF   CATTLE    TO  BELGIUM. 

Whilst,  however,  I  do  not  believe  our  stock  growers  can  derive  much 
benefit  from  the  importation  of  Belgian  cattle,  I  am  convinced  that, 
with  proper  management,  an  enterprise  for  the  exportation  to  this 
country  direct,  of  both  live  cattle,  beef,  and  mutton  would  pay  a  large 
profit.  In  the  herewith  inclosed  table,  marked  C,  I  have  given  the  sell- 
ing price  of  meat  in  the  markets  of  the  principal  cities  of  this  country, 
which  will  serve  as  a  basis  of  calculations  from  which  the  profits  of 
such  an  enterprise  may  be  calculated,  and  I  cannot  but  think  that  witli 
the  now  regularly  plying  steamers  between  Antwerp,  New  York,  and 
Philadelphia,  a  large  and  profitable  trade  of  this  character  could  be 
secured. 

JNO.  WILSON, 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE,  Comul 

Brussels,  November  9,  1883. 


BELGIUM. 
A. — Average  weight  and  price  of  three-year-old  cattle  in  Belgium. 


3(35 


Name  of  breeds. 

Live  weight. 

Price  per  kilogram. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Flemish         

Kilos. 
550  to  600 
400        500 
500        600 
550        650 

Kilos. 
600  to  700 
450        550 
550        C50 
6f>0        750 

Kilos. 
600  to  800 
500        550 
600        700 

600        SCO 

Francs. 
0.88 
0.60 
1.00 
1.00 

Francs. 
0.95 
0.60 
0.90 
0.  90  to  0.  95 

Francs. 
1.  05  to  1.  15 
0.  90        1.  00 
1.  00        1.  10 
1.  00        1.  10 

Dutch      .        ........... 

Crosses  with  the  Shorthorns  have  slightly  increased  tho  weight  of  all  the  native  breeds  above  given> 
but,  as  will  be  seen,  tho  Flemish  ox. commands  tho  highest  price  per  kilogram  in  tho  market. 

B.— Measurement  of  cattle  exhibited  at  Brussels  in  1880,  and  which  received  premiums. 

[In  centimeters.] 


Description. 

Height. 

Vertical 
depth  of 
the 
breast. 

Length 
of 
tho  head. 

Height 
of 
hock. 

Length 
of 
buttocks. 

Length 
of  whole 
body. 

Bulls  over  three  years  : 

144  2 

81  7 

58  5 

55  5 

6^  7 

ICQ  7 

145.2 

84  0 

58'  3 

53  6 

62  0 

181  7 

Dutch.                 • 

140  0 

80  5 

58  0 

5^  0 

57  5 

183  0 

135.0 

77  0 

54.  3 

75  2 

53  0 

167  6 

Bulls  from  one  to  three  years  : 

138.0 

78  0 

55  0 

45  0 

58  0 

179  0 

141  0 

78  3 

55  6 

54  3 

go  o 

178  0 

Dutch                       

14  L.  3 

80  3 

57  0 

54  0 

60  7 

179  7 

124  7 

69  0 

50  7 

53  0 

45  0 

150  0 

Cows: 

141  5 

77  0 

56  0 

54  5 

59  2 

180  5 

138  0 

78  3 

52  1 

53  1 

59  7 

1^2  7 

Dutch                            •  »      . 

139  0 

77  3 

56  3 

53  0 

56  0 

169  3 

Ardennais  or  crossed  

129.  7 

71.3 

50.  3 

52.3 

53  3 

163  0 

Heifers  from  two  to  three  years  : 

134  4 

72  3 

50  6 

F4  0 

54  3 

165  0 

130  3 

74  8 

49  0 

49  3 

53  3 

163  3 

Dutch              

135.3 

72.0 

50.3 

51.6 

51.7 

164.7 

130  7 

67  0 

49.0 

51.3 

49  0 

161  0 

C. — Average  price  per  kilogram  of  the  ivliole  carcass  of  animals  killed  and  dressed  for  the 
markets  in  the  principal  cities  of  Belgium. 

[In  francs.] 


Ox. 

Bulls. 

Cows. 

Veal. 

Mut. 
ton. 

1.C2 

1.39 

1.49 

2.00 

1.82 

1.65 

1.42 

1.50 

2.05 

1.60 

1.80 

1.40 

1.70 

2.00 

2.00 

.66 

1.38 

1.50 

2.14 

2.91 

.85 

1.50 

1.75 

1.90 

1.75 

~~         ••••••.•••• 

.60 

1.34 

1.  50 

1.45 

1.55 

.70 

1.50 

1.60 

1.80 

1.90 

.60 

1.30 

l.CO 

1.20 

1.80 

.82 

1.59 

1.70 

1.77 

1.81 

366  CATTLE    AND   DAIRY   I? ARMING. 

CATTLE  AND  CATTLE  BREEDING  IN  Bi XG1UM. 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL   TANNER,  OF  LIEGE. 
DIFFICULTIES  IN  THE  WAY  OF   SECURING  CATTLE   STATISTICS. 

I  can  appreciate  the  desire  on  the  part  of  the  Department  to  make  an 
effort  to  elevate  the  standard  of  American  cattle ;  and  it  would  afford 
me  pleasure  of  no  ordinary  degree  should  it  be  in  my  power  to  aid  in 
this  important  matter.  The  inquiries  contained  in  the  cattle  circular 
are  far-reaching  and  very  comprehensive.  In  a  small  country  like  Bel- 
gium, where  at  least  three  distinct  languages  are  spoken,  where  weights 
and  measures  are  so  different  from  our  own,  one  encounters  difficulties 
(in  ascertaining  facts  such  as  are  sought  for  by  the  circular)  of  such  a 
nature  and  from  so  many  different  quarters  as  to  almost  discourage  one 
in  pursuit  of  them  from  all  efforts.  Most  farmers  in  this  part  of  Belgium 
speak  Valoonish,  those  near  Antwerp  or  in  the  western  part  of  Belgium 
speak  Flemish,  while  the  better  classes  speak  French.  The  laboring 
classes  not  only  cling  tenaciously  to  their  ancient  language,  but  they 
manifest  absolutely  no  interest  in  imitating  what  is  called  the  higher 
class  in  speaking  French.  The  consequence  of  this  is  that,  as  they 
must  come  in  contact  with  the  laboring  classes,  and  as  all  the  servants 
are  from  the  Valoon  class,  the  mountain  must  go  to  Mohammed,  tlio 
better  classes  must  know  enough  Valoon  to  speak  and  understand  it. 
This  being  the  case,  I  hope  the  efforts  of  the  Department  in  a  field  so 
difficult  to  get  at  facts  will  be  appreciated  by  our  stock-raisers. 

BELGIAN   CATTLE  BREEDS. 

So  far  as  the  different  breeds  of  cattle  in  Belgium  are  concerned  they 
are  as  numerous  as  there  are  localities  of  different  names,  and  there 
has  not  been  that  general  and  universal  effort  to  retain  purity  of  breed 
in  Belgium,  such  as  has  been  the  case  in  England.  There  has  been 
effort,  however,  to  this  end  in  a  few  cases  of  families  of  rank,  who  have 
been  very  particular  about  the  pedigrees  of  their  cattle,  and  therefore 
in  this  way  there  are  several  breeds  that  have  retained  their  untarnished 
pedigrees  most  faithfully.  The  breeds  to  which  I  allude  present  now, 
in  outward  appearance  and  in  results  for  both  the  dairy  and  for  beef, 
cattle  that  cannot  be  surpassed  in  the  world.  This  is  more  particularly 
true  of  the  breeds  known  here  as  the  Hollandais  or  Dutch  cow  and  the 
Flamande  or  Belgian  cow.  There  is  a  strong  likeness  between  these 
two  breeds  that  suggests  unmistakably  to  a  judge  of  cattle  a  common 
origin.  Of  this  there  is  not  a  question  in  my  mind.  I  will  not  take  space 
to  explain  why  I  am  so  thoroughly  convinced  of  this. 

ASSUMED  ORIGIN  OF  THE  ENGLISH  SHORTHORNS. 

Professor  Heugeveld,  a  Dutch  authority  of  great  repute  on  cattle, 
says  that  the  Shorthorns  of  England  had  their  origin  from  the  cattle 
of  North  Holland  in  this  way :  "When  William,  Prince  of  Orange,  was 
called  to  the  British  throne,  he  missed  greatly  the  line  flavor  and  rich, 
creamy  milk  of  his  native  land,  and  had  a  shipload  of  them  imported 
from  Holland  to  England,  and  from  these. sprang  some  of  the  now  most 
famous  breeds  of  cattle  in  England."  If  that  is  true,  I  am  glad  to  call 
the  attention  of  the  Department  to  it,  as  it  seems  to  answer  one  of  the 


BELGIUM. 


367 


inquiries  of  the  cattle  circular,  as  to  whether  the  breed  of  cattle  are 
improved  by  migration  ?  as  the  Shorthorns  which  sprang  from  the  Hol- 
landais  seem  to  thrive  better  in  England,  and  seem  to  be  greater  favor- 
ites than  any  other  breed  of  cattle  in  the  world. 

CATTLE  CENSUS  OF  BELGIUM. 
Statement  showing  the  different  breeds  and  number  of  cattle  of  different  breeds  in  Belgium. 


Name  of  breed. 

Price  per  head 
(average),  cow. 

1 
3 

w 

Depth  of  chest. 

£ 

1 

0 

I 

1 

Circumference 
of  body. 

Length  of  neck. 

05 
| 

*.i 

.a  3 

*3 

* 

Average  weight, 
cows^ 

Number  of  breed 
in  Belgium. 

Hollandais,  Dutch,  or  Holensteins  . 
Elamaml  or  Belgian,  three  types  : 

$118  to  $180 
195        259J 

Ft. 

45 

4| 

Ins. 
32.2 

33  3 

Ft. 

61 

5?.i 

JPt 

74 

73 

Ins. 
25 

21 

Ins. 

32* 

°6  9 

Lbs. 
2,204 

999 

109,  000 

118        1481 

4^ 

34 

ei 

7*? 

24 

30i 

670 

>  210  000 

Picardy          

118        148£ 

4§ 

34 

8 

7S 

24 

30i 

676 

110        135 

4J 

30 

3 

7i 

23 

25 

659 

80  000 

Flechet               .              -     - 

60        100 

8 

27  3 

it  3 

71 

l)2 

o-u 

V90 

10  000 

Charleroi        

60          90 

S* 

30  3 

fc" 

7,7 

f3 

gl 

713 

80  000 

60          90 

Jv 

30  3 

62 

7* 

23 

gl 

740 

50  000 

r/Oldeubour"~     

55          70 

4| 

83  3 

5? 

7  :|- 

"3 

25  9 

735 

102  000 

05          85 

4J 

32  2 

01 

RJ 

24 

31i 

800 

50  000 

C5          80 

41 

30  2 

8 

el 

21 

°-5 

300 

15  000 

CO          75 

4  jij 

28  1 

Jp 

oj 

22 

22.9 

,200 

10,000 

j&ll  others  

850,  000 

* 

Total  cattle  in  Belgium  

1,  556,  000 

THE  FAVORITE  BREEDS  IN  BELGIUM. 

As  before  stated,  there  has  not  been  that  general  effort  in  Belgium 
to  retain  purity  of  particular  breeds  which  has  been  the  rule  in  Eng- 
land. There  are  many  distinctive  breeds  here,  but  this  is  more  in  con- 
sequence of  the  customs  of  the  people,  who  care  little  for  change.  More 
effort  has  been  bestowed  on  the  perfection  of  the  material  on  hand  than 
in  trying  to  accomplish  such  results  from  foreign  stock.  Each  breed 
has  its  advocates  as  to  its  superiority,  and  if  an  equal  assemblage  of 
the  representatives  of  all  the  breeds  should  meet  to  determine  which 
was  the  best,  it  would  be  difficult  to  arrive  at  a  decision.  I  believe,  on 
the  whole,  that  the  contest  would  be  reduced  to  three  breeds,  viz,  the 
Flemish,  the  Dutch,  and  the  ElecLct.  Between*  these  three  the  con- 
test  would  be  very  close,  with  many  advantages  in  favor  of  the  latter, 
the  principal  being  the  richness  of  the  milk  and  the  cheapness  of  the 
cattle. 

THE  HOLLANDAIS. 

The  Hollandais,  or  Dutch,  cattle,  on  the  whole,  I  think  are  generally 
more  esteemed  than  any  other,  though  the  Flemish,  which  belong  to 
the  same  family,  hold  almost  equal  rank.  The  two  cuts  below  will  rep- 
resent, though  in  an  unsatisfactory  manner,  the  Holland  cow  as  she 
exists  in  this  section. 

The  color  is  black  and  white,  but  it  often  varies,  as  it  does  also  in  the 
Flemish,  to  a  brindle-reddish  or  dun  color,  varied  with  spots  of  white. 


368  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

THE  FLEMISH  COW. 

The  cut  below  will  represent  the  Flemish  cow  with  tolerable  ac- 
curacy. 

This  breed  of  cows  ranks  almost  equally  with  the  Dutch,  even  in 
North  Holland,  and,  in  France,  Germany,  and  Switzerland,  are  esteemed 
above  any  English  breeds  by  all  those  who  know  cattle.  That  which 
this  breed  lacks  in  quantity  of  milk  it  makes  up  in  quality,  and  that 
which  it  lacks  in  size  for  beef  is  compensated  in  the  same  way.  These 
two  breeds  are  as  gentle  and  kind  in  disposition  as  it  is  possible  for  cat- 
tle to  be.  A  child  can  walk  up  to  them  anywhere  or  at  any  time,  and 
lead  them  or  play  around  them,  without  any  fear  of  harm. 

THE  FLECHET  BREED. 

The  Flechet  breed  is  a  very  remarkable  breed  of  cattle.  They  are 
small,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  table,  and  of  a  red  and  white  color.  The 
products  of  this  breed  are  better  known  here  than  the  breed  itself.  Le 
leurre  de  ILerve  (butter  from  Herve)  brings  in  this  market  from  15  to  20 
cents  more  per  kilogram  than  that  of  any  other  butter,  and  milk  and 
cheese  from  this  breed  of  cattle  are  equally  valuable.  I  am  told  that 
the  King  of  the  Belgians  sends  all  the  way  from  Brussels  and  draws 
his  supply  of  butter  and  cheese  from  the  dairymen  of  Herve.  The 
home  demand  for  the  butter  and  cheese  of  Herve  is  greater  than  the 
supply  at  15  to  20  and  even  25  per  cent,  more  per  pound  than  any  other 
cheese  or  butter,  but  for  all  this  it  finds, its  way  through  intermediaries 
into  Brussels,  Paris,  Amsterdam,  Berlin,  Cologne,  and  Aix  la  Chapelle 
for  the  best  restaurants  and  hotels.  This  breed  of  cattle  shows  perhaps 
more  than  any  illustration  that  I  could  point  to  that  the  theory  advo- 
cated by  me  in  this  dispatch  is  a  good  and  rational  one,  and  causes  me 
to  advocate  it  with  the  more  confidence. 

The  i'armers  of  Herve  know  absolutely  nothing  about  the  genealogy 
of  this  breed.  They  only  know  that  the  same  cattle  have  grazed  on 
the  same  pasture  during  the  life  of  their  fathers,  or  grandfathers,  and 
that  they  yield  good,  rich  milk,  and  that  they  must  take  good  care  of 
them.  If  you  were  to  talk  to  them  about  pedigree  you  would  not  be 
understood  ;  they  have  none — only  that  they  are  good  cattle.  They  are 
not  even  known  by  name,  and  I  have  therefore  taken  it  upon  myself  to 
name  them  after  Chevalier  F.  Flechet,  the  well-known  authority  on 
agriculture,  who  has  done  and  written  so  much  and  so  ably  for  the 
agricultural  interest  of  his  section.  Through  the  urbanity  of  Mr. 
Flechet  I  am  enabled  to  send  the  photographs  of  this  breed.  I  would 
take  this  occasion  to  offer  a  word  of  warning  to  Americans  who  may 
read  that  which  I  have  said  of  this  breed  of  cattle,  and  who  may  be 
desirous  of  possessing  them,  and  that  is,  to  profit  here  by  their  English 
experience,  and  if  they  buy  do  so  quietly,  so  that  the  price  will  not  be 
run  up  on  them  here  as  it  has  been  by  the  shrewd  cockney. 

IMPORTS  OF  BUTTER  INTO  BELGIUM. 

The  percentage  of  cattle  bred  for  the  dairy  in  Belgium  would  reach 
20  per  cent.  The  remainder  would  go  to  the  butcher  and  for  breeding 
and  draft  purposes.  Artificial  butter  is  extensively  used  and  man- 
ufactured iu  Belgium  and  is  imported  from  Holland  as  well  as  the  gen- 
uine article.  The  total  importation  of  butter  into  this  little  kingdom 
amounted  to  nearly  9,000,000  kilograms  for  1881,  being,  however,  more 


BELGIUM.  369 

by  nearly  1,000,000  kilograms  than  for  1882  and  most  probably  the  same 
for  the  present  year.  The  imports  of  butter  into  Belgium  for  1882  was 
7,842,000  kilograms,  valued  at  28,501,648  francs,  the  bulk  of  which  went 
to  Holland  and  France;  to  the  former  13,697.299  francs,  and  to  the  lat- 
ter 8,528,234. 

IMPORTS  OF  MEAT  AND  MEAT  CATTLE  INTO  BELGIUM. 

The  quantity  of  cattle  or  meat  imported  into  Belgium  for  home  con- 
sumption is  hard  to  arrive  at.  The  tables  transmitted  with  the  present 
for  translation  by  the  Department  will  be  as  near  as  can  be  ascertained. 
A  vast  amount  of  the  imports  of  beef  and  cattle  are  merely  in  transit 
to  some  other  country.  The  consumption  of  meat  in  Belgium  is  not  so 
great  as  in  England,  because  of  the  better  compensation  received  by 
the  English  laborer,  which  enables  him  to  supply  his  table  more  liber- 
ally. Few  workmen  in  Belgium  are  there  that  taste  meat  (other  than 
pork  and  horse  flesh)  more  than  once  a  year.  Even  the  better  classes  do 
not  consume  beef  in  proportion  to  the  same  classes  in  the  United  States 
and  England.  During  Lent  and  on  Fridays  Catholics  do  not  eat  meat, 
and,  with  five  millions  of  people,  that  would  make  a  vast  difference  in 
the  annual  consumption  of  an  article.  But  for  all  this  Belgium  does 
not  produce  nearly  one-half  enough  meat  for  home  consumption.  The 
tables  inclosed  will  show  the  Department  from  what  countries  Belgium 
makes  up  her  deficiency.  That  the  United  States  takes  such  an  insig- 
nificant part  in  the  profits  of  this  business  is  deplorable,  and  can  come 
from  nothing  but  lack  of  effort  on  our  part.  Every  business  man  knows 
what  is  wanted  to  introduce  and  extend  his  business  at  home,  and 
from  that  he  must  surely  be  able  to  draw  conclusions  as  to  what  he 
must  do  to  extend  it  beyond  our  borders.  It  would  seem  almost  folly 
to  repeat  a  thing  so  simple,  viz :  It  is  only  to  supply  a  good  article 
cheaper  than  any  one  else  can  supply  it  and  make  it  known  to  dealers 
in  such  articles  abroad  by  samples  or  otherwise.  Cheapness  is  the  thing 
that  goes  further  than  anything  else,  and  it  is  hard  to  hide  a  cheap 
article  even  if  we  want  to  hide  it,  and  therefore  it  is  very  easy  to  make 
it  known. 

COUNTERFEITING  AMERICAN  PRODUCTS. 

There  are  prejudices  here  now  against  our  products  which  Americans 
at  home  can  destroy  by  continuing  to  prove  that  they  supply  good  and 
pure  articles.  They  can  in  this  way  show  to  the  people  here  that  great 
rulers  and  their  ministers  can  descend  to  misrepresentation  for  a  purpose. 
I  called  personally  on  every  important  dealer  here  in  American  supplies 
and  asked  him  to  apprize  me  if  at  any  time  there  should  be  any  complaint 
against  any  American  article  that  might  pass  through  his  hands.  Only 
a  few  days  elapsed  before  one  sent  me  a  note  saying  that  he  would  like  to 
have  me  call.  I  did  so  without  loss  of  time.  He  said  that  there  had  been 
complaint  about  some  American  butter  that  the  inspector  had  examined 
and  pronounced  it  mauvais  and  artificial.  I  asked  him  if  he  had  received 
the  butter  direct  from  the  United  States.  "  No,"  he  said,  "it  came  from 
a  house  I  trade  with  inMastricht."  On  looking  at  the  firkin  that  con- 
tained the  butter  it  had  the  name  of  a  house  in  Newark,  N.  J.,  but  I 
could  see  at  a  glance  that  the  printing  on  the  label  had  not  been  done 
in  the  United  States.  I  summoned  the  inspector  and  insisted  that  the 
label  be  torn  off,  which  was  reluctantly  done.  Underneath  the  label 
was  the  Dutch  brand  that  had  been  burned  into  the  wood  of  the  firkin, 
H,  Ex.  51 24 


370  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING.  -  * 

showing  that  it  came  from  Mastricht.  The  fraud  was  revealed  at  once, 
and  I  was  relieved  at  once,  because  I  knew  that  good  butter  is  very  dif- 
ficult to  keep  fresh  for  any  length  of  time,  and  that  if  the  butter  had 
been  of  American  origin  that  the  chances  were  that  it  was  either  arti- 
ficial or  that  it  was  rancid.  I  mention  this  matter  only  to  show  the  De- 
partment to  what  an  extent  we  must  fight  against  the  unfair  methods 
that  are  resorted  to  in  order  to  create  a  prejudice  against  us.  I  am  de- 
termined that  these  prejudices  shall  have  no  foundation  in  this  consular 
district.  If  any  American  should,  on  the  other  hand,  contribute  to- 
wards these  prejudices  by  importing  an  article  that  would  have  that  tend- 
ency. I  want  to  expose  him  at  home. 

AMERICAN  PRODUCTS  FOR  BELGIAN   CONSUMPTION. 

We  can  supply  meats,  butter,  eggs,  poultry,  &c.,  to  the  markets  of 
Antwerp  and  Brussels  cheaper  than  it  can  be  supplied  from  France  or 
Holland  by  3  or  4  per  cent,  on  the  pound.  I  mention  these  two  places 
because  Antwerp  is  the  entrepot  for  Belgium,  and  places  in  the  interior 
generally  supply  themselves  with  foreign  commodities  from  there,  and 
hence  it  is  to  this  place  that  the  principal  efforts  for  the  introduction  of 
American  articles  must  be  directed.  It  would  be  well  to  extend  those 
efforts  to  Brussels,  as  a  large  surrounding  area  draws  its  deficiency  in 
provisions  from  that  city,  and  many  merchants  doubtless  go  there  that 
do  not  go  to  Antwerp. 

PRESERVATION  OF  MEATS  AND  VEGETABLES  FRESH. 

Dr.  Clossett  of  this  city  has  invented  a  means  of  preserving  the  fresh- 
ness of  meats  and  other  provisions  which  may  be  of  great  service  to  our 
exporters  in  these  articles.  I  have  asked  him  for  a  statement  of  the 
merits  of  his  process,  which  I  herewith  inclose.  He  has  secured  pat- 
ents for  this  process  both  in  Europe  and  America.* 

GEO.  C.  TANNER, 

Consul. 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Verviers  and  Liege,  October  13, 1883. 


BELGIAN  AND  DUTCH  MILCH  COWS. 

EEPOET  Ur  CONSUL  WILSONS 

Eeferring  to  my  dispatch  No.  17,  September  15,  and  the  fetes  given 
during  the  past  summer  upon  the  occasion  of  the  semi-centennial  anni- 
versary of  Belgian  independence,  wherein  I  described  somewhat  the 
commercial  maritime  history  of  Ghent,  and  the  installation  of  the  new 
basin  and  docks,  I  continue  the  subject  by  some  descriptive  comments 

*The  statement  here  referred  to,  concerning  the  preservation  of  fresh  meat,  and  a 
valuable  paper  on  farming  in  Belgium,  also  transmitted  by  Consul  Tanner,  will  be  found 
in  the  supplement. 

t  Consul  Wilson,  writing  from  Nantes,  under  date  of  December  17,  1883,  represents 
that  no  material  of  any  account  on  which  to  base  a  cattle  report  exists  in  that  dis- 
trict, and  refers  to  his  report  on  the  dairy  exhibition  at  Ghent  in  1881,  which,  being 
most  apropos  to  this  work  on  the  cattle  breeds  of  the  world,  is  herewith  republished 
from  Consular  Report  No.  15.  Some  valuable  tabulated  statements,  together  with 
appropriate  illustrations,  not  published  before,  are  inserted  in  the  report  in  its  re- 
published  form. 


BELGIUM.  371 

\ 

on  the  f6te,  of  the  agricultural  society  of  the  province  of  Flandre  Orien- 
tale  held  in  this  city,  and  which  took  the  form  of  an  exhibition  of  the 
milk  industry  of  Belgium  and  Holland.  It  consisted  of  three  grand 
divisions : 

1.  Milch  cows,  the  producers. 

2.  Milk,  butter,  and  cheese,  the  products. 

3.  The  machinery  and  mechanical  appliances  used.    These  will  be 
treated  in  inverse  order. 

DAIRY  MACHINERY. 

The  machinery  was  interesting  and  accomplished  its  work  well,  but 
requires  no  elaborate  mention,  for  the  "  universal  Yankee  nation"  can 
be  taught  but  little  about  machinery  upon  which  is  brought  to  bear, 
every  day  in  the  year,  the  inventive  genius  of  every  farm-yard,  cheese 
factory,  and  creamery  in  the  laud. 

One  machine  is  worthy  of  description.  It  was  the  invention  of  Le- 
feldt,  of  Paris,*' for  separating  rapidly  the  milk  and  cream.  It  is  a  well- 
known  fact  that  milk  is  heavier  than  cream.  The  usual  method  is  by 
the  application  of  the  law  of  gravitation  to  this  fact.  The  invention 
consists  in  the  application  of  the  law  of  centrifugal  motion.  The  fresh 
milk  is  put  in  what  resembles  a  common  upright  cylindrical  milk  can. 
The  can  is  made  to  revolve,  still  upright,  at  a  high  speed.  The  milk,  being 
the  heaviest,  flies  to  the  periphery,  which  forces  the  cream  to  the  center. 
They  are  thus  separated  instantly,  and  are  drained  off  by  means  of  flex- 
ible tubes — into  one  vessel  the  milk,  into  another  the  cream.  The  only 
care  apparently  necessary  is  to  keep  up  the  speed,  and  to  properly 
gauge  the  quantity  at  the  entry  and  exit. 

Among  the  machinery  exhibited  was  some  for  agriculture,  and  I  was 
surprised  to  see  the  United  States  so  well  represented.  Of  lawn-mowers 
from  Philadelphia,  pumps  from  Seneca  Falls,  rakes,  hoes,  hay  and  dung 
forks,  both  from  New  York  and  Philadelphia,  the  United  States  had 
nearly  a  monopoly;  and  the  importer,  Dutry-Calson,  said,  for  light  ness, 
combined  with  strength  and  beauty  of  style,  no  other  implements  could 
successfully  compete  with  ours.  lie  said  England,  Germany,  and  Bel- 
gium could  make  them  as  good,  but  they  were  clumsier  and  heavier. 

Here  was  another  illustration,  if  one  be  needed,  of  the-necessity  for 
industrial  art  education  among  our  mechanics.  With  an  improvement 
approaching  thoroughness  in  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  art  as  ap- 
plied to  industry,  the  American  mechanic  can  lead  the  world  in  the  manu- 
facture of  articles  for  every  day  use,  whether  of  necessity  or  luxury, 
and  a  demand  will  be  created  for  them,  which  will  be  coextensive  with 
the  knowledge  of  them.  This  should  be  the  ambition  of  every  Ameri- 
can mechanic,  and  when  done,  it  will  justly  be  the  pride  of  the  nation 
which  gave  him  birth. 

There  were  many  sample  wagons  and  carts  for  the  delivery  of  milk 
to  the  customers,  showing  neat  contrivances  to  insure  its  safety  from 
adulteration  by  the  carrier,  but  these  have  not  yet  come  into  general 
use.  The  commonest  method  of  delivery  in  this  country  is  shown  by 
the  following  photograph,  taken  from  nature. 

BELGIAN  MILCH  COWS. 

The  second  division,  milk,  butter,  and  cheese,  will  be  reserved  for  an- 
other  dispatch,  if  deemed  of  sufficient  importance. 


372  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

The  first  division,  milch  cows,  would  have  been  of  great  interest  to 
American  breeders  and  stock-raisers.  I  believe  this  subject  can  be 
studied  with  advantage  and  benefit  to  the  people  of  both  countries,  and 
it  is  for  this  reason  I  deem  it  my  duty  to  make  this  report. 

An  object  to  be  desired  by  the  cattle-breeders  of  the  United  States 
is  an  increase  in  tkesize  of  their  beef  cattle.  This,  I  believe,  can  be  ma- 
terially aided  by  the  importation  of  the  large  cows  of  the  Holland  and 
Flemish  races  and  cross-breeding  them  with  the  cattle  of  the  United 
States.  I  also  believe  this  will  be  accompanied  by  an  improvement  in 
the  milking  qualities. 

The  outlay  in  time,  trouble,  expense,  money  invested,  &c.,  is  just  about 
as  much  to  raise  a  poor  or  small  steer  as  a  large  one,  while  the  recom- 
pense is  increased  as  the  weight  increases.  It  needs  neither  illustration 
nor  argument  to  prove  the  benefit. 

The  only  question  is  its  feasibility  with  sufficient  benefit  to  compen- 
sate for  outlay. 

If  the  cattle-breeders  of  the  United  States  could  have  seen  the  herd 
of  cows  at  this  exposition,  as  I  did,  they  would  have  been- impressed,  as 
I  was,  by  the  great  size  of  the  cows  and  the  desire  to  use  them  in  the 
manner  suggested. 

There  were  372  cattle  entered  for  exhibition,  nearly  every  one  being 
milch  cows,  for  the  exhibition  related  exclusively  to  the  miik  industry. 

The  races  represented  were  the  Dutch  or  Holland  cattle,  the  Belgian 
or  Flemish  cattle — both  of  pure  blood — and  some  Durhams  crossed  with 
these.  The  first  two  are  indigenous  to  their  respective  countries,  very 
much  alike,  and  doubtless  sprang  from  the  same  stock.  1  am  not  sufii- 
ciently  expert  to  give  an  opinion,  but  I  believe  them  to  be  the  same,  or 
nearly  the  same,  breed  known  in  the  United  States  as  Holstein  cattle. 

Although  these  cattle  may  have  no  standing  in  the  English  and  Ameri- 
can herd-books  as  blooded  cattle,  I  am  constrained  to  believe  it  is  rather 
a  fault  to  be  charged  against  the  books  than  against  the  cattle,  for  it 
can  be  demonstrated  that  they  have  an  ancestry  many  centuries  old,  from 
which,  and  through  which,  they  have  had  a  pure  and  unbroken  descent, 
breeding  in  and  in,  without  admixture  or  deterioration,  preserving  and 
perpetuating  the  characteristics  and  distinguishing  marks  of  their  race 
with  a  great  certainty,  definiteness,  and  exclusiveness  as  the  best  blood 
known.  Motley  speats  of  them  as  noted  nearly  three  hundred  years 
ago  for  their  size  and  general  good  qualities. 

The  agricultural  society  of  the  Netherlands  has  within  a  few  years 
published  a  herd-book  containing  the  pedigree  of  their  cattle  as  far  back 
as  it  can  be  traced.  Their  examination  shows  the  existence  of  this,  as 
a  distinctive  breed  of  cattle,  in  possession  of  this  country  as  far  back  as 
the  thirteenth  century. 

The  color  of  the  Belgian  cattle  is  most  frequently  black  and  white, 
while  the  Hollanders  are  the  same,  but  sometimes  with  a  sprinkling  of 
corn  or  tan  color,  something  like  that  of  the  Alderneys.  Sometimes 
this  gets  to  be  almost  red,  like  the  Durhams.  But  in  both  the  domi- 
nant colors  are  black  and  white  placed  in  large  spots  over  the  body ;  so 
also  are  the  other  colors,  though  smaller  and  sometimes  running  off  into 
flecks.  Their  colors  are  somewhat  known  by  the  celebrated  paintings 
of  Paul  Potter,  of  Amsterdam,  made  in  the  seventeenth  century. 

A  tolerably  correct  idea  can  be  obtained  of  a  Holland  or  Belgian  cow 
from  the  accompanying  photograph  ;  not  taken  for,  nor  presented  as  an 
entirely  correct  representation,  but  the  nearest  I  could  easily  procure. 

The  landscape  illustration  herewith  gives  a  better  idea  of  these  cat- 
tle; and  when  the  traveler  by  rail  or  canal  looking  down,  as  he  does, 


BELGIUM. 


573 


on  the  low  level  lands  of  these  countries,  beholds  a  landscape,  broad  and 
deep,  of  rich  green  meadow,  set  in  a  frame  of  distant  timber,  each  field 
bounded  by  one,  sometimes  two,  rows  of  tall  sentinel  trees  which  look 
like  a  skirmish  line,  farm  houses  and  barns  with  red-tile  roofs,  wind- 
mills throwing  their  giant  arms  about,  apparently  proud  of  their  strength, 
while  dotted  over  the  grass,  lighting  up  the  scene  with  their  large  black 
and  white  spots,  as  something  to  attract  and  rest  the  eye,  are  to  be  seen, 
some  standing,  some  browsing,  some  lying  down,  all  quietly  chewing 
their  cud,  a  thousand  of  these  cattle,  immense  in  their  size,  with  their 
sleek  smooth  coats,  ho  says,  "This  is  a  land  of  richness;  here  are  the 
evidences  of  prosperity." 

SIZE   AND  WEIGHT  OF  BELGIAN  CATTLE. 

I  give  in  tabular  form  the  size  of  these  cattle,  and  I  ask  any  breeder 
or  farmer  to  compare  these  sizes  by  measurement  with  his  own  cattle, 
and  see  if  my  conclusions  are  not  correct. 


j 

£ 

0 

03 

Jd 

§ 
M 

'S 

ft   . 

•8 

O 
P 

M 
f 

<D 

1 

C2 

u'd 

«S 

°  03 

is 

P. 

Description. 

-is 

«M 

C 

0 

j| 

0 

ja 

1 

' 

fo 

5 

£ 

1 

•| 

1 

O 

"3 

b 

W 

P 

^ 

0 

P 

«< 

<3 

Ft.  In. 

Jn*. 

Pfc   Jn. 

Ff.   Jn. 

Jn*. 

Jn*. 

Lbs. 

Flemish  or  Belgian  bulls 

4    8| 

32.2 

6    2 

7    8.  5 

24.  8 

23.  2 

2,200 

$120  to  $140 

FlfsTuish  or  Belgian  cows  

4    T| 

33.3 

5  10.9 

7    1.8 

23.2 

34.8 

l|6f)0 

200        240 

Holland  three-year-old  balls  

4    7i 

31.5 

6    0.8 

7    4.5 

22.8 

23.6 

1,875 

100        120 

Holland  three-year-old  cows  

4    G* 

30.3 

5    6.5 

6  10.2 

22 

23.2 

1,450 

160        230 

It  must  not  be  understood  that  these  figures  represent  the  size,  weight, 
or  price  of  all  Belgian  or  Holland  cattle  as  they  might  stand  in  a  herd ; 
neither  do  they  represent  the  exceptionally  large  ones.  They  are  ob- 
tained by  taking  the  average  of  the  prime  first-class  cattle  as  they  have 
been  exhibited  at  the  various  exhibitions  in  Belgium. 

The  following  table  represents  another  class  of  cattle,  those  for  beef  or 
milk,  not  the  finest,  choicest  cattle,  such  as  are  described  in  the  fore  going 
table,  but  such  first-class,  prime  cattle  as  can  be  bought  in  market  every 
day,  giving  the  average  for  each  item.  It  gives  the  weights,  both  alive 
and  dressed,  the  prices  per  pound  for  each,  the  percentage  of  clean  beef 
after  slaughtering,  and  the  price  of  each  animal: 


Description. 

Weight,  alive. 

Weight, 
dressed. 

Percent- 
age after 
slaugh- 
tering. 

Trice 
per  pound, 
alive. 

Price 
per  pound, 
dressed. 

Price  per 
auimal. 

Beef,  three  years  and  over  : 

Pounds. 
1,  325  to  1,  540 

1,200  to  1,450 
1,200  to  1,450 
1,100  to  1,250 

Pounds. 
750  to  1,  COO 
GOO  to     825 

C  56  to  GO 
)  60  to  65 

53  to  57 

Cents. 
8ito  0? 
!)  to  10  5 
8  to  9 

Cents. 
14  to  15 
15 

$125  to  $150 

80        120 
80        120 
60          80 
C  30          40 
I  50          60 

Cows  for  milk  

Heifers,  two  to  three  years. 

374  CATTLE    AND    DAIRY    FARMING. 

MILKING  QUALITIES   OF  BELGIAN  COWS. 

I  might  content  myself  with  giving  results,  but  many  farmers  and 
dairymen  would  desire  the  formula,  may  be  for  their  satisfaction,  may 
be  for  their  use. 

The  cows  were  divided,  by  numbers,  into  groups,  and  one  or  more 
members  of  the  jury  assigned  to  each  group,  so  as  to  give  his  personal 
attendance  and  supervision, whenever  anything  was  to  be  done. 

The  exhibition  lasted  four  days.  At  six  o'clock  of  the  evening  of  the 
third  day,  at  a  given  signal,  each  cow  was  milked  clean  and  dry,  pre- 
paratory to  the  test  of  the  morrow. 

The  hours  for  milking  were  first  fixed  for  6  o'clock  a.  m.,  12  m.,  and  G 
p.  m.,  but  some  complaints  were  made  that  the  cows  would  not  be  able 
to  hold  their  milk  for  twelve  hours,  and  the  first  milking  was  advanced  to 
4  o'clock  a.  in.  Every  owner  provided  his  own  milkers,  with  whom  his 
cows  were  acquainted. 

The  milk  being  taken  from  the  cows  was  weighed,  not  measured,  this 
being  considered  more  accurate — each  one  separate,  of  course — and  after 
being  thoroughly  stirred,  samples  were  taken  for  tests  of  cream  and  for 
specific  gravity,  and  the  rest  returned  to  the  owner  for  his  use. 
"  The  samples  for  cream  were  then  examined,  each  one  being  made  the 
same  quantity  and  height  in  the  glass,  and  being  immersed  to  the  neck 
in  a  large  pan  of  ice-cold  water,  were  set  aside  for  the  cream  to  rise.  All 
•samples  were  subjected  to  exactly  the  same  treatment  under  the  same 
conditions. 

Many  methods  and  machines,  scientific  and  otherwise,  for  determining 
the  quantity  of  cream  were  considered,  but  none  were  believed  to  be  so 
fair  and  equal  as  this. 

Such  was  thy  treatment  after  each  milking,  and  at  every  step  an  accu- 
rate record  was  made  by  the  member  of  the  jury  in  charge. 

ihe  specific  gravity  was  taken  at  15°  centigrade,  58J°  Fahrenheit. 
The  samples  for  cream  were  allowed  to  remain  until  the  next  morning 
at  9  o'clock ;  so  the  duration  of  their  stay  was  twenty -six,  eighteen,  and 
twelve  hours,  respectively.  The  water  in  the  pan  then  marked  12  C., 
53  F. 

The  samples  being  taken  out,  the  height  of  the  cream  was  accurately 
measured  and  weighed,  and  all  recorded  on  blank  forms  prepared  for 
the  purpose.  The  result  will  be  given  further  on.  (See  Table  No.  3.) 

Butter  is  the  principal  product  from  within  this  province,  and  there- 
fore the  interesting  question  was,  which  cow's  milk  would  have  the  most 
cream  and  consequently  be  the  richest  in  its  butter-making  qualities. 

The  amount  of  milk  and  of  cream  given  by  each  cow  for  one  day  being 
determined,  that  would  determine  the  relative  value  of  the  cows  in  these 
regards  on  that  day.  But  these  cows  may  have  been  giving  milk  for 
different  periods ;  one  cow  calved  one  month,  and  another  six  months 
previous  j  then  the  conditions  will  have  been  so  changed  that  the  amount 
of  milk  or  cream  given  on  that  day  is  no  true  test.  And  this  change  of 
condition  is  inevitable  unless  all  the  cows  could  be  induced  to  calve  on 
the  same  day.  As  this  could  not  probably  be  done,  and  would  not  be 
desired  if  it  could,  some  arrangement  must  be  made  by  which  this  dif- 
ference can  be  equalized. 

This  was  done  by  the  adoption  of  a  table  of  experiments  and  tests, 
made  and  prepared  during  the  past  two  years  by  Mr.  Tisdall,  of  the 
Holland  Park  and  Horton  dairy  farms  in  England,  at  the  request  of  the 
Dairy  Association  of  Great  Britain,  and  used  at  its  great  exhibition  in 
188<K.  (Agricultural  Gazette,  February  21, 1881.  Table  No.  1.) 


PLATE     164 


Julius  Bien&Co.Lith. 


A      FLEM  ISH       M  I  LK  M  AID 


oO' 

£va°ti 


165 


JuJi 


A       BRABANT         MILKMAID 


P  L  AT  E     166 


Julius  Ken  &  Co  Mth . 


AN       ANTWERP      MILKMAID 


PLATE     167 


Julius  Si  en  &  Co  .JJith . 


A      DUTCH        M  I  LKM  Al  D 


BELGIUM. 


375 


TABLE  No.  I.— Milk  given  ly  sixty  Engli&li  cozvs  during  twelve  months. 
[In  quarts.] 


Names  of  cows. 

First  month. 

I 

q 
1 

1 

a 
'H 

i 

11.0 

17.0 
16.0 
14.0 
14.0 
14.0 
12.5 
14.5 
12.5 
13.0 
15.0 
16.0 
15.0 
12.  0 
14.0 
17.0 
14.0 
18.0 

17.5 
19.0 
17.0 
18.0 
18.0 
13.0 
22.  0 
17.5 
13.0 

17.5 
15.0 
15.0 
17.9 
15.0 
13.0 
18.0 
16.5 
12.5 
12.0 
17.0 
21.5 
15.0 
18.0 
19.5 
11.5 
14.0 
12.5 
10.5 
13.5 
14.0 
15.0 
13.5 
15.0 
12.0 
13.5 
12.0 
15.0 
17.5 
25.0 

14.0 
22.0 
15.0 

o 

1 

11.0 

13.0 
14.0 
14.0 
13.0 
13.0 
12.0 
12.0 
18.0 
11.5 
13.0 
15.0 
13.  5 
10.0 
11.0 
14.5 
12.0 
15.5 

14.5 
17.0 
14.0. 
16.0 
18.0 
12.0 
18.0 
15.0 
11.0 

16.5 
12.5 
12.0 
15.5 
15.0 
10.5 
12.0 
15.5 
12.0 
12.0 
1J.5 
15.5 
14.0 
14.0 
18.0 
10.5 
11.5 
12.0 
9.5 
13.5 
11.5 
14.5 
11.0 
15.0 
12  0 
13.0 
13.0 
14.0 
15.5 
23.5 

12.0 
22.0 
15.0 

Fifth  month. 

Sixth  month. 

Seventh  month. 

Eighth  month. 

Ninth  month. 

^  •£  Tenth  month. 

g  g  Eleventh  month. 

3 

a 

o 

a 

-3 

1 

H 

2.5 

7.0 

Average  for  the  1 
twi'lvo  months. 

Number  of  milk 
mouths.  1 

L   Victoria  (second  prize, 
dairy  show,  1878). 
!   Primrose  

18.5 

18.5 
18.0 
16.0 
17.0 
16.  5 
16.5 
19.0 
14.5 
18.0 
16.5 
21.0 
18.5 
17.0 
19.5 
17.0 
18.0 
19.0 

20.0 
18.0 
19.0 
20.0 
20.5 
16.0 
23.0 
17.0 
17.0 

19.5 
17.0 
17.0 
20.0 
17.5 
17.0 
18.0 
18.0 
16.5 
16.0 
20.0 
22.0 
18.'  0 
20.0 
19.0 
15.5 
17.5 
14.5 
16.0 
16.5 
17.5 
18.0 
15.5 
19.0 
19.0 
16.0 
16.0 
19.0 
25.5 
20.0 

17.0 
21.0 

14.5 

19.0 
20.0 
16.0 
17.0 
15.5 
14.5 
15.5 
10.5 
15.0 
14  5 
16.5 
16.5 
14.0 
17.5 
19.0 
18.0 
20.0 

17.5 
22.0 
19.0 
19.5 
19.0 
14.0 
22.0 
16.5 
16.0 

18.5 
16.0 
16.0 
19.9 
16.5 
15.  5 
19.0 
16.0 
13.5 
13.0 
20.0 
21.5 
17.0 
21.0 
16.0 
12.5 
16.0 
15.5 
13.5 
15.5 
16.0 
17.5 
15.5 
17.0 
15.5 
15.5 
14.5 
18.0 
17.5 
25.0 

16.5 
22.0 
18.5 

9.5 

11.5 
11.0 
12.5 
11.5 
12.5 
10.0 
11.0 
12.5 
10.5 
12.5 
15.0 
!*>  0 

8.0 

11.5 
11.0 
9.0 
11.0 
11.0 
9.0 
10.0 
12.0 
9.5 
10.0 
11.0 
11.0 
9.5 
10.5 
13.0 
10.5 
13.5 

12.5 
13.0 
12.0 
11.5 
13.0 
11.0 
16.0 
12.5 
10.0 

12.5 
KJ.5 
10.0 
14.0 
13.5 
10.5 
13.5 
14.5 
8.5 
8.5 
11.5 
6.5 
13.5 
8.5 
15.0 
7.0 
10.5 
11.0 
7.5 
8.5 
9.0 
11.0 
9.5 
12.5 
12.0 
11.0 
9.5 
13.0 
12.5 
20.5 

9.5 

17.5 
12.0 

7.5 

9.5 
8.5 
9.0 
11.0 
12.0 
7.0 
11.5 
12.0 
9.0 
10.0 
10.5 
10.5 
8.0 
8.5 
12.0 
9.0 
11.0 

9.5 
12.0 
10.0 
14.0 
11.5 
9.5 
11.0 
10.5 
7.5 

4.5 
12.5 
10.5 
12.5 
10.0 
8.5 
12.5 
12.5 
7.5 
8.5 
9.5 
8.0 
12.0 
7.5 
11.0 
7.0 
9.5 
9.0 
5.5 
7.0 
7.0 
10.0 
5.5 
10.5 
10.0 
9.5 
6.5 
10.0 
11.0 
14.0 

5.5 
15.5 
11.0 

7.0 

8.5 
4.5 
7.5 
9.0 
10.0 
6.0 
10.5 
9.5 
5.5 
9.0 
9.0 
9.0 
6.0 
8.0 
11.5 
9.5 
9.0 

8.0 
9.0 
5.0 
8.0 
10.0 
7.5' 
12.5 
8.5 
8.5 

6.0 
8.5 

8.83 

11.54 
12.87 
10.3 
10.68 
10.63 
10.38 
9.0 
9.0 
10.55 
10.83 
10.06 
8.64 
9.77 
10.18 
12.15 
10.15 
11.86 

12.94 
13.83 
11.8 
12.8 
14.  61 
10.  36 
15.0 
13.33 
10.04 

14.71 
12.04 
10.50 
14.4 
13.0 
11.56 
13.09 
13.20 
10.25 
10.0 
14.68 
12.1 
10.09 
12.0 
13.65 
8.35 
11.04 
10.04 
8.88 
9.36 
11.37 
10.37 
11.57 
10.0 
11.0 
11.2 
10.81 
12.55 
13.31 
17.0 

11.06 
14.14 
10.92 

12 

12 
8 
10 
11 
11 
9 
16 
17 
9 
12 
16 
17 

A 

13 
13 
11 

9 
12 
10 
10 
9 
11 
11 
9 
11 

7 
12 
15 
10 
7 
8 
11 
12 
10 
9 
8 
10 
16 
10 
10 
11 
11 
11 
9 
11 
8 
12 
7 
10 
9 
10 
8 
10 
11 
12 

8 
14 
14 

I  Jones  

Shortlegs  

3.0 
7.0 
8.0 
6.0 
8.0 
8.5 
1.0 
8.5 
7.5 
7.0 
2.0 
7.0 
8.0 
7.5 
5.5 

3.0 
9.5 
6.5 
4.0 
6.0 
7.0 
12.0 
8.5 
7.5 

2.0 
5.0 
3.5 

Hereford 

2.0 
1.0 

.... 

Eed  Cheeks  

Champion  ...... 

8.0 
8.0 

7.5 
7.5 

6.0 
7.0 

Barry 

Dasher  

Cowslip 

8.5 
7.0 
6.5 

7.0 
7.5 
6.0 

6.0 
6.0 
5.5 

Charmer  ....... 

Jones 

9.5 
9.0 
13.0 
10.5 
13.5 

14.0 

16.0 
14.0 
13.0 
15.5 
11.5 
16.5 
14.0 
9.5 

14.5 
12.5 
10.5 
14.5 
13.5 
10.5 
13.5 
15.0 
11.5 
10.0 
15.0 
8.5 
13.5 
13.0 
17.0 
7.5 
10.5 
11.5 
9.0 
10.5 
11.0 
14.0 
10.5 
14.0 
12.0 
12.0 
12.0 
14.5 
13.5 
20.5 

10.5 
20.0 
15.5 

Looselcy 

4.0 
10.0 
6.5 
3.5 

3.0 
9.0 
6.5 
2.0 

7."6" 
5.0 

Cockhoirn   . 

Sandwich  

.Meadow  Flower,  14 
(first  prize  at  Chip- 
ponham). 
Hereford  (Cox's)  . 

Blossom  ...     . 

8.0 
1.5 
4.0 

7.0 

5.5 

Widney 

Cherry 

Hereford  (Cornish's)  ... 
Tiphorn 

7.0 
8.0 

5.5 
4.0 

.... 

Hereford  (old)  .. 

Noble 

Fair  Maid  (second  prize 
at  Croydon,  1880). 

6.5 

•4.0 

.... 

Darling  ....... 

10.5 
12.5 

13.5 

8.5 
10.0 
9.5 

11.5 
11.0 
8.5 

9.0 
9.5 

6.0 
9.5 

Lily 

Champion 

Lady  

Bride 

7.0 
10.5 
14.5 
7.5 
5.5 
10.0 
7.0 
9.5 
7.0 
10.5 
5.5 
9.5 
8.0 
4.5 
6.0 
5.0 
7.0 

io.'o 

11.5 
6.5 
4.5 

"6."5 

10.5 
6.5 

7.~5 
9.0 

5~6 

Peasant  .... 

Pearl  10 

Henrietta,  17 

Shortlegs 

6.0 
9.0 
6.0 
8.0 
5.5 
8.5 
7.5 
4.0 
5.5 

4.5 
6.5 
5.0 
2.5 
5.0 
6.5 
6.5 

Minnie  

6.5 

8.0 

Infintai 

Bailey 

Arief  3 

3.5 
4.5 
2.5 

.... 

Venus,  3    ..     . 

Brownie 

4.0 

2.5 

.... 

Cherry  white 

5.5 

5.5 

3.5 

4.0 

Venus  2 

9.5 
5.5 
8.0 
3.0 
7.5 
11.0 
12.0 

3.5 
12.5 
9.0 

5.5 
1.0 
7.0 

2.5 

Minikin 

Betts 

6.5 

6.5 
11.0 
12.0 

3.0 
7.5 
11.0 

Infant 

7.0 
12.5 

8."6" 

Charmer  (first  prize  at 
Islington,  1879). 

Sta" 

10.0 
8.0 

8.5 
6.5 

7.0 
8.5 

7,  fi 

19.0 

5.5 

1.85 

Average  for  sixty  cows  . 

18.  07117.  09 

! 

15.03 

13.75 

12.55 

11.34 

9.72 

7.94 

6.01 

4.67 

3.05 

11.5 

10.81 

If  the  cow,  at  the  time  of  calving,  gives  milk  to  be  represented  by  100,  she  will  give — 

In  the  second  month 5.424  less- 

IP  the  third  month 16.823  less- 

In  the  fourth  month 23.907  less- 

In  the  fifth  month 30.548  less- 

In  the  sixth  month 37.285  less. 

In  the  seventh  month 46.209  less. 

In  the  eighth  month 58.060  less 


376 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


Example. — A  cow  gives  an  average  of  20  quarts  per  day  in  the  second 
month  after  calving.  How  much  did  she  give  at  the  time  of  calving? 

Kepresent  the  amount  or  quantity  she  gave  by  100,  and  we  find  by 
the  table  that  she  now  gives  an  average  of  5.424  per  cent.  less.  100 — 
424  =  94.576  =  the  percentage  she  now  gives,  •§%$% -$  —  1.0573. 

In  order  to  facilitate  the  work  and  to  render  it  more  accurate,  giving 
the  coefficients  not  only  by  months  but  by  weeks,  the  following  table 
was  prepared  by  Monsieur  Coilpo : 

TABLE  No.  2. 


Description. 

First 
mouth. 

Second 
month. 

Third 
mouth. 

Fourth 
month. 

Fifth 
month. 

Sixth 
month. 

Seventh 
month. 

1  0000 

1  0573 

1  2023 

1  3142 

1  4398 

1  5935 

1  8591 

So  von  to  fifteen  'days  
Fifteen  to  twenty  -two  days  .  . 
Twenty-two  to  thirty  days  ... 

1.  0137 
1.  0270 
1.  0428 

1.  0902 
1.  1*251 
1.  1024 

1.  2284 
1.  2558 
1.  2843 

1.  3435 
1.3741 
1.  4002 

1.  4754 
1.5128 
1.  5521 

1.  6525 
1.  71UO 
1.  7847 

1.  9482 
2.  0465 
2.  1$51 

Example. — A  cow  having  calved  five  months  and  twelve  days  ago, 
gives  now  8.75  quarts  per  day.  How  much  did  she.  give  at  the  time  of 
calving  ? 

She  is  in  the  sixth  month  of  her  lactation.  Seek  the  intersection  ot 
the  perpendicular  column  of  that  month,  and  the  horizontal  line  of 
"  seven  to  fifteen  days,"  and  we  find  the  coefficient  1.6525 ;  that  is,  she 
gave  at  the  time  of  calving  If  $-§$  more  milk  than  she  does  at  the  end 
of  five  months  and  twelve  days.  Multiply  the  coefficient  1.6525  by 
the  amount  of  milk  she  now  gives,  8.75  quarts,  another  answer  will  be 
what  she  gave  at  the  time  of  calving  in  8.72  x  1.6525  =  14.46  quarts, 
the  answer. 

These  tables  do  not  pretend  to  mathematical  correctness — that  cannot 
be  attained  by  any  table  or  formula.  They  only  pretend  to  give  from 
the  test  of  experience  the  probable  rate  of  decrease  or  "  taper"  which 
may  be  expected  in  the  milk-giving  qualities  of  cows. 

When  the  calculation  is  sought  to  cover  a  long  period  of  milking,  like 
ten  or  twelve  months,  it  becomes  uncertain.  The  jury  did  not  apply  it 
for  a  greater  period  than  seven  months. 

I  now  give  the  result  of  the  competitive  examination,  being  the  table 
presented  by  the  jury. 

I  have  continued  the  weight  in  kilograms  and  the  measure  in  liters. 
The  law  of  the  United  States  has  legalized  the  metric  system  and  al- 
lows it  to  be  used  (Rev.  Stat.,  sec.  3570).  A  kilogram  is  equivalent  to 
2.2046  pounds  avoirdupois,  and  1  liter  is  equivalent  to  1.0567  quarts. 
Roughly  stated,  a  kilogram  is  2  pounds,  and  a  quart  and  a  liter  may  bo 
taken  as  s.ynonymous.  Any  one  interested  can  easily  make  the  calcu- 
lation to  his  own  satisfaction. 

Twenty-two  of  these  cows  in  the  table  gave  over  20  liters,  twelve  gave 
over  24  liters,  three  gave  over  28,  two  over  30,  while  one  gave  34.3 
liters,  or  over  8  gallons  of  milk,  as  her  daily  yield.  Twenty  gave  over 
2  liters  of  cream,  five  gave  over  3,  while  one  gave  4.7  liters. 


BELGIUM. 


377 


Calculating  by  the  table  aforesaid,  the  jury  decided  the  amount  of 
cream  given  by  the  eight  highest  at  the  time  of  calving  to  be  as  follows, 
and  awarded  the  prizes  accordingly : 


Number. 

Liters  of 
cream  at 
calving. 

"No.  of 
prize. 

Description  and  amount  of  prize. 

23  

6  113 

1 

62  ... 

5  554 

2 

67  

4  934 

3 

7IJ 

4  442 

4 

68  

4*190 

5 

52 

4  148 

G 

30  

4  132 

7 

Bronzo  medal  and  100  francs 

22  

3,682 

8 

Bronze  medal  and  75  fraucs. 

Some  of  these  cows  had  calved  more  than  seven  months  previous,  and 
the  rule  was  not  applied  to  them,  but  special  prizes  were  given.  Six 
cows  from  eight  to  nine  months  previous ;  four  cows  from  ten  to  eleven 
months  previous :  four  cows  from  thirteen  to  fourteen  months  previous; 
three  cows  from  seventeen  to  twenty-two  months  previous.  One  of 
them  had  calved  more  than  twenty- two  months  previous,  yet  she  gave 
as  her  daily  yield  20.546  liters  of  milk,  from  which  was  taken  1.36  liters 
of  cream.  The  jury  awarded  her  a  prize,  as  they  say,  "for  her  remark- 
able persistence." 

It  must  not  be  supposed  these  were  the  only  cows  tested,  or  that 
these  were  the  only  prizes  awarded.  Subdivision  or  groups  were  made 
according  to  residence  of  owner,  age  of  heifer,  &c.,  and  this  of  which  I 
have  been  speaking  is  only  the  report  of  the  jury  on  milk  or  cream. 
There  were  several  others.  The  milk  of  some  cows  contained  three 
times  as  much  cream  as  others.  One  gave  15.80  per  cent,  of  cream, 
while  another  gave  but  4.74  per  cent. 

In  the  majority  of  cases  the  morning  milk  was  superior  to  that  of  the 
midday  or  evening. 

The  specific  gravity  varied  between  1,026.3  and  1,038.  Of  the  one 
hundred  and  sixty-eight  samples  of  milk  tested  for  specific  gravity, 
twenty  five  fell  below  1,029. 


378 


CATTLE  AND  DAIKY  FAKMING. 


TABLE  No.  3.— Showing  quantity  and  quality  of  milk  of  cows  of  th)  Dutch  and  Flemish 

breeds  and  their  crosses. 


1 

1 

1 

1 

4 
5 
7 
8 
9 
10 
11 
16 
17 
22 

Proprietors. 

Time  cf  calving  to  day  of 
test,  July  12,  1881. 

Hour     of 
milking. 

Weight  of  milk  (in  kilos.)  . 

Density  of  milk  at  58£°  F. 

Product  of  each  milking  (in 
liters). 

Volume  of  cream  in  product 
of  each  milking  (in  litets). 

Amount  per  cent,  of  cream 
in  the  three  milkiuga 
when  taken  together. 

Volume  of  croam  according 
to  Table  III  at  the  time  of 
calvins;  (in  liters). 

Co  efficient  from  Table  in 
with  which  to  multiply 
totals  in  column  7. 

(1) 
J.  Talboom,  of  Haesdonck 

L.  Van  Peteghem,  of  Saf- 
felare. 

J.  Piers  do  Kaveschoot,  of 
Olsene. 

J.  Vercauteren,  of  Ileus- 
den.1 

J.  F.  Schollier,  of  Leerne 
St.  Martin. 

(2) 
Mos.  Dys. 
10         4 

5 
1        13 
5         2 
9        23 
9         2 
1        26 
4        29 
3         1 

5 

(3) 

Morning  . 
Noon  

Night.... 

Total.. 

Morning  .  . 
Nocn  ,  

Night  

Total.. 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total.. 

Morning  .. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

(4) 

8.900 
5.925 
5.100 

(5) 

1030.  0 
29.5 
28.9 

(6) 

8.  544 
5.755 
4.  957 

(7) 

0.709 
0.576 
0.580 

(8) 
•     9.68 

}>     8.85 
•     9.94 
•     8.08 
!>  12.91 

J 

>  11.43 
I     7.95 
9.77 
>     8.73 
•  11.92 
I  14.75 

(9) 

19.  256 

1.865 

2.161 
2.652 
3.219 

1.  5935 
1.0902 
1.  5935 

5.  545 
3.630 
3.170 

28.  4 
28.3 
28.9 

5.392 
3.530 
3.081 

0.609 
0.  399 
0.348 

12.  003 

1.356 

10.  350 
7.735 
7.130 

31.7 
31.4 
29.5 

10.  032 
7.500 
6.926 

0.  803 
0.750 
0.880 

24.  458 

2.433 

0.800 
0.  660 
0.554 

fl.320 
7.900 
6.560 

32.5 
31.4 
30.6 

10.  964 
7.660 
6.365 

24.  989 

2.020 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 



4.  540|    30.1 
3.  375     30.  3 
2.  815     29.  5 

4.407 
3.276 
2.734 

0.  573 
0.436 
0.336 

10.417 

1.345 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

A.  Claus,  of  Meirelbeke.  .  . 

F.  Tollens;  of  Lovendeg- 
hem. 

J.  VanHaelst,  of  Water- 
vliet. 

L.  Van  Ongeval,  of  Steen- 
huize-Winhuizen. 

C.  Bouckaert,  of  Looten- 
hulle.2 

5.760     27.7 
3.790     28.9 
3.  165     28.  3 

5.605 
3.684 
3.078 

•0.  729 
0.368 
0.317 

12.  367 

1.414 

1.418 
2.837 
3.179 

3.682 

1.  1624 
1.  5521 
1.  2843 

1.  5521 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total  . 

6.620 
5.095 
4.  105 

31.9 
31.1 
31.4 

6.415 
4.941 

3.980 

0.513 
0.  361 
0.346 

15.  336 

"67623 
6.893 
5.194 

18.  710 

1.220 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

6.832 
7.100 
5.350 

31.6 
30.0 
30.0 

0.510 
0.710 
0.608 

1.828 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

2.020 
9.640 
7.560 

33.0 
30.3 
30.1 

11.636 
9.356 
7.339 

0.  892 
0.873 
0.  710 

28.  331 

2.475 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total  .  . 

8.360 
5.820 
4.445 

30.7 
30.0 
30.0 

8.111 
5.650 
4.315 

0.865 
0.716 
0.575 

18.  076 

2.156 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total  .. 

7.  620 
5.290 
3.670 

32.2 
31.1 
31.4 

7.382 
5.134 
3.558 

1.058 
0.804 
C.  510 

6.074 

2.372 

1  Honorable  mention. 


2  Eighth  prize. 


BELGIUM. 


379 


TABLE  No.  3. — Showing  quantity  and  quality  of  milk  <fc. — Continued. 


o 

!_ 

23 
24 
25 
26 
27 
29 
30 
81 
88 
84 
86 

Proprietors. 

I 

15 

:! 

H 

Honr     of 
milking. 

Weight  of  milk  (in  kiloa.). 

Density  of  milk  at  5i°F. 

Product  of  each  milkin-g  (in 
liters). 

Volume  of  cream  in  product 
of  each  milking  (in  liters). 

Amount  per  cent,  of  cream 
in  the  throo  milkiugs 
when  taken  together. 

1  Volume  of  cream  according 

to  table  No.  Ill  at  thetirne 
of  calving  (in  liters). 

Co-efficient  from  Table  III 
with  which  to  multiply 
totals  in  column  7. 

(D 

F.  Van  Hecke,   of  Eaey- 
gem.1 

Ch.  De  Mul,  of  Sinay  

E.  Vanhoorzeele,  of  Saffe- 
lare. 

F.  Martens,  of  La  Pinte  .  . 

J.  De  Sloovere,  of  Seve- 
noecken.2 

Ch.  Ney  t,  of  Sleidinge  
do3  

(2) 
Mos.   Dys. 
6        17 

8        27 
4        27 
8       30 
3       51 
8         2 
4       27 
2         4 

22 
4       15 

(3) 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total.. 

(4) 

11.020 
7.730 
6.175 

(5) 

30.1 
29.5 
29.2 

(6) 

10.  698 
7.508 
6.000 

(7) 

1.391 
0.976 
0.620 

(8) 
•  12.34 

•  10.64 
>     6.01 
•     8.18 
14.24 
I  13.77 

I  12.03 

1 

[»    4.74 

I    9.92 
I     6.62 
i  11.60 

(9) 
6.113 

2.  0465 

24.  206 

2.987 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total  .  . 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

10.4901    29.310.  19l!  0.815 
6.  930'     29.  2   6.  733;  0.  830 
6.805|    28.9   6.613   0.860 

23.  537 

2.  5054 

5.090 
3.  570 

2.925 

31.5 
30.3 
81.1 

4.  934   0.  296 
3.465   0.219 
2.836   0.161 

11.  235   0.676 

Morning  .. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

4.920 
4.385 
3.322 

31.6 
30.0 
29.5 

4.769 
4.257 
3.226 

0.302 
0.411 
0.290 

12,252 

1.003 

3.435 

1.  3741 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

~&680 
5.147 
4.237 

28.6 
30.3 
29.5 

8.439 
4.995 
4.115 

1.378 
0.682 
0.439 

17.  549 

2.499 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

5.  150 
4.  265 
3.880 

26.6 
27.0 
27.3 

5.016 
4.152 
3.777 

0.702 

0.526 
0.555 

12.  945 

1.783 

4.132 
1.403 

1.  5521 
1.  2023 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

10.  200 
7.557 
5.000 

29.5 
28.0 
27.3 

9.907 
7.351 
4.867 

1.090 
0.  955 
0.617 

B.Veyt,  of  Waersclioot... 
C.Devos,  of  Zwynaorde  .. 

Aug.  Van  Loo,  of  Dcstel- 
bergon. 

J.  Vergauwen,  of  Beveren- 
Waes. 

22.  125 

2.662 

0.  523 
0.395 
0.248 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total  .  . 

33.6 
30.6 
30.6 

10.  820 
8.142 
6.402 

10.  468 
7.902 
6.211 

24.  581 

1.166 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total  .  . 

9.287 
6.722 
5.285 

31.5 
30.3 
30.6 

9.003 
6.524 
5.128 

0.720 
0.783 
0.547 

20.  655 

2.050 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

9.610 
6.400 
5.140 

29.7 
29.5 
28.3 

9.331 
6.216 
4.999 

0.559 
0.435 
0.366 

20.546 

1.360 

Morning.. 
Noon  

Ni^ht  

Total 

2.535 
1.700 
1.  365 

29.5 
28.3 
29.5 

2.462 
1.  653 

1.325 

0.270 
0.198 
0.  163 

5.440 

0.631 





aFirst  prize. 


'Ninth  prize. 


•Seventh  prize. 


380  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

TABLE  No.  H.— Showing  quantity  and  quality  of  milk,  ^-c.— Continued. 


i 

37 
39 
42 
43 
44 
45 
51 
52 
53 
57 
58 

Proprietors. 

IM 

0 

&. 

§ 

tfCf 

IS 

ii 

«H  *=*" 

°£ 
«•** 

1 

Hour     of 
milking. 

Weight  of  milk  (in  kilos.). 

Density  of  milk  at  58J°  F. 

Product  of  each  milking  (in 
liters). 

Volume  of  cream  in  protlnct 
of  each  milking  (in  liters). 

Amount  per  cent,  of  cream 
in  the  three  milkings 
when  taken  together. 

Volume  of  cream  according 
to  Table  III  at  the  time  of 
calving  (in  liters). 

Co-efficient  from  Table  III 
with  which  to  multiply 
totals  in  column  7. 

(1) 
M.Dobbelaere-Hulin  

J.  Van  'Damme,  of  Safie- 
lare. 

D.  Vincent,  of  Lcerne  St. 
Martin. 

II.  Haelterman,  of  Goitre.. 

P.    Vanlangenhaeke,    of 
Appelterre.1 

F.  Martens,  of  La  Pinte  .  . 
S.  Dossche,  of  Melle  

(2) 
Mos.  Dys. 
1          5 

(?) 
3        H 

e     27 

1         2 
1       26 
5         3 
5       10 
7 
11         9 
1       13 

(3) 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

(4) 

3.120 
2.170 
1.730 

(5) 

31.7 

32.7 
31.6 

(6) 

3.024 
2.  101 
1.677 

(7) 

0.171 
0.111 
0.112 

(8) 
•     5.79 

),. 

>     8.12 
8.34 
•  12.86 
|>  10.60 

J 

I     9.53 

>  10.20 

1 
j»  13.72 

I  10.82 
J 

I     9.30 

8) 

6.802 

0.394 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

3.  865 
2.  542 
1.410 

32.1 
32.2 
32.5 

3.  745 
2.461 
1.365 

0.  273 
0.172 
0.118 

7.571 

0.563 

2.413 
3.172 
3.333 

1.  3435 
2.1551 
1.  0573 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

8.950 
7.460 
6.350 

30.4 
30.0 
29.5 

8.686 
7.242 
6.1Q8 

0.608 
0.651 
0.536 

22.  096 

1.795 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  ..... 
Night  

Total 

7.880 
5.990 
4.350 

33.  5 
33.6 
32.8 

7.624 
5.  79". 
4.211 

0.587 
0.463 
0.421 

17.  630 

1.471 

1.342 
1.318 
0.490 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

11.  550 
8.650 
5.060 

32.2 
29.7 
32.2 

11.389 
8.401 
4.902 

24.  492 

3.150 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

3.560 
2.850 
2.360 

34.4 
33.6 
33.4 

3.441 
2.757 
2.283 

0.344 
0.275 
0.280 

8.481 

0.899 

3.170 
4.148 
2.050 

1.  5935 
1.  6525 
1.0000 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  ..... 
Night  

Total 

9.380 
6.  800' 
5.320 

31.5 
31.4 
30.6 

9.093 
6.593 
5.162 

0.700 
0.705 
0.583 

L.  DeWilde.of  Moortzeole5 

J.Van  Impe,  of  Semmer- 
zako. 

J.  Vandevoordo,   of  Er- 
velde. 

MM.  De  Beer,  freres,  of 
Gand. 

20.  848 

1.988 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

11.  140 

7.970 
6.260 

32.4 
29.2 
30.6 

10.  790 
7.743 
6.074 

0.  863 
0.875 
0.772 

24.  607 

2.510 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

5.900 
4.853 
4.632 

33.8 
33.3 
32.8 

5.765 
4.696 

4.485 

0.768 
0.564 
0.718 

14.  946 

5.312 
5.127 
4.139 

2.050 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

5.  477 
5.  280 
4.262 

30.9 
31.1 
29.5 

0.478 
0.547 
0.552 

14.  578 

1.577 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

7.620 
7.300 
5.859 

34.1 
32.2 
31.7 

7.369 
7.072 
5.679 

0.639 
0.684 
0.549 

20.  120 

1.872 



1  Honorable  mention. 


'Sixth  prize. 


BELGIUM. 


381 


TABLE  No.  3. — Showing  quantity  and  quality  of  milk,  ^-c.— Continued. 


Numoerofcvws.  i 

Proprietors. 

<M 

o 

&. 

IS 

ttc<f 

p1"1 

It 

Sn> 

*f 

®  •*-> 

s 

H 

Hour     of 
milking. 

Weight  of  milk  (in  kilos.). 

Density  of  milk  at  58J°  F. 

Product  of  each  milking  (in 
liters). 

1  Volume  of  cream  in  product 
of  each  milking  (in  liters). 

Amount  per  cent,  of  cream 
in  the  three  milkinga 
when  taken  together. 

Ivolumo  or  cream  according 
to  Table  111  at  the  time  of 
calving  (in  liters). 

ILo-ctncient  Horn  Table  111 
\vith  which  to  multiply 
totals  in  column  7. 

62 

66 
67 
68 
69 
72 
73 
74 
80 
82 

(1) 

T.  Van  "Wonterghem,  of 
Meyghem.1 

J.  De  Buyte,  of  Belcole.  .  . 

B°»  G.  Delia  Faille,  of  Hu- 
ysse.2 

P.  F.  Bolangier.of  Meirel- 
beke.*     ' 

E.  Verdegen,   of  Bachte- 
Maria-Leerne. 

Veuve     Hamerlinck,    of 
Wynkcl. 

Hospices  of  Moorbeke  4.  . 

Veuve  Dellaeit,  of  Saflfe- 
lare.s 

Veuvo  et  enfants  Vande- 
voorde,  of  Ertvelde. 

G.  "Woltors,  of  Mont  St  . 
Amaud. 

(2) 
Mos.  Dys. 
27 

23 
4         2 
3         3 
10         4 
3        15 
3        20 
6       27 
10         2 
10 

.  (3) 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

(4) 

13.  900 
12.  56i  i 
8.907 

(5) 

34.4 
35.6 
32.8 

(6) 

13.  525 
12.  152 
8.624 

(7) 

1.713 
1.944 
1.121 

(8) 
}>  13.93 

I  12.25 
•  12.94 
I   10.28 
I  12.42 

7.20 

1 
j»  11.72 

•  15.80 
10.6 
8.3 

(9) 
5.554 

4.934 
4.196 

.1624 

.4398 
1.  3142 

Total 

34.  301 

4.778 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total.. 

34.1 
34.7 
33.9 

10.  295 
8.  042 
6.063 

9.955 
7.771 
5.864 

1.195 
0.  933 
0.762 

23.  590 

2.  890 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

1.319 
8.852 
7.155 

32.5 

3i.  7 
31.7 

10.  962 
8.580 
6.935 

1.461 

1.087 
0.879 

26.  477 

3.427 

Morning.. 
Noon  
Night  

Total 

1.  810 
10.  670 
9.480 

30.6 
2!>.5 
26.3 

1.459 
0.364 
9.237 

0.840 
0.967 
1.386 

31.  060 

3.193 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night... 

Total 

4.919 
3.907 
3.137 

33.6 
32.5 
32.8 

4  759 
3.784 
3.037 

0.571 
0.504 
0.364 

11.58 

8.55 
6.41 
5.25 

1.439 

2.023 
4.442 
3.393 

1.  3741 
1.3741 
2.  1551 

Moining.. 
Noon  
Sight  

Total.. 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total.. 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night  

Total.. 

Morning  .  . 
Noon  
Night.... 

Total.. 

Morning  . 
Noon  
Night.... 

Total. 

8.82o 
6.  600 
5.410 

31.5 
29.5 
30.0 

0.456 
0.534 
0.482 

T472 

20.21 

uTBr 

8.38 
7.62 

30.4 
30.6 
27.8 

11.93 
8.64 

7.83 

0.964 
0.922 
1.347 

27.58 

3.233 

'o.  675 
0.450 
0.450 

4.43 
3.03 
2.81 

~31.9 
31.4 
31.4 

4.29 
2.94 
2.72 

9.96 

1.575 

9.79 
8.26 
6.87 

35.5 
32.2 
31.2 

9.45 
8.00 
6.66 

0.866 
0.880 
0.810 

24.  12 

2.556 

2.334 

1.  0137 

11.18 
8.77 
8.46 

33.  C 
33.  S 
33.4 

10.82 
8.48 
8.18 

0.830 
0.721 
0.751 

27.49 

2.302 

1  Second  prize.       2 Four th  prize.       'Fifth  prize.       «  Third  prize.       'Honorable  mention. 


382  CATTLE    AND   DAIRY   FARMING. 

TRANSPORTATION  OF  BELGIAN  CATTLE  TO   THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  intent  of  this  dispatch  would  fail  if  I  said  nothing  about  trans- 
portation. 

The  law  and  regulations  in  force  in  the  United  States  concerning 
tariff,  inspection,  and  entry  can  be  better  determined  there. 

Cattle  cannot  be  carried  across  the  Atlantic  with  either  safety  or 
profit  in  sailing  vessels.  Steamships  do  not  always  take  them.  They 
must  be  offered  in  lots  large  enough  to  pay  the  expense  of  fitting  up 
stalls  for  their  accommodation.  It  may  be  recognized  as  the  rule  that 
steamships  which  carry  passengers,  either  saloon  or  emigrant,  will  not 
carry  cattle.  There,  doubtless,  are  exceptions,  but  not  many.  The  au- 
thorities at  New  York  object. 

The  White  Cross  line  of  steamers,  Steininann  &  Ludwig,  Antwerp, 
agents,  carry  all  the  cattle  from  Belgium  (and  I  believe  from  Holland) 
to  the  United  States.  They  run  to  New  York  and  to  Montreal. 

These  shipments  have  been  (to  New  York)  in  summer  of  1880, 169 
cattle  ;  in  summer  of  1881,  230  cattle. 

Two  shipments  have  been  made  this  present  season  to  Montreal. 

The  prices  are  as  follows : 

Per  head. 

Bulls  and  cows  on  deck £5 

Yearlings 4 

Calves 3 

Under  deck,  additional 1 

The  ship  puts  up  the  stalls  and  supplies  the  water;  feed  and  men  to 
care  for  the  cattle  are  for  shipper's  account.  French,  Edge  &  Co.,  of 
New  York,  are  agents  for  this  line. 

Canada  has  been  interesting  herself  in  the  manner  suggested  to 
Americans  in  this  dispatch.  She  has  imported,  for  breeding  purposes 
alone,  from  Belgium  during  the  past  year  62  head  of  cattle,  and  from 
England  32  bulls,  336  cows,  and  21  calves,  while  her  exports  for  beef 
have  been,  during  the  year  1880,  to  England  alone,  50,905  head. 

As  to  transportation :  Mr.  John  C.  Moosily,  agent  Red  Star  steamers, 
Antwerp ;  Steiumann  &  Ludwig,  agents  White  Cross  steamers,  Ant- 
werp; Wambersie  &  Son,  ship-brokers,  Rotterdam. 

EXPORTATION  OF  AMERICAN  HORSES  TO  BELGIUM. 

Of  course  no  recommendation  of  mine  or  indeed  of  any  consul  could 
be  accepted  upon  our  judgment  solely  or  without  examination  and  trial, 
but  I  venture  to  express  my  belief  that  a  good  business  man — a  judge 
of  horses  and  cattle — could  make  a  profitable  business  by  the  importa- 
tion of  cattle  to  the  United  States,  as  I  have  suggested,  and,  for  a  return 
cargo,  exporting  horses  for  use  in  Belgium,  Holland,  and  France.  The 
prices  are  high  here,  and  for  light  driving  and  riding  horses  I  think 
remunerative  prices  could  be  obtained. 

This  trade  is  already  commenced,  but  is  in  its  infancy.  I  hope  my 
notice  of  it  will  attract  the  attention  of  those  concerned. 

A  cargo  of  60  American  horses  (mares)  were  landed  within  the  past 
month  at  Bruges,  in  this  consular  district,  and  sold  there  at  auction, 
bringing  fair  and  satisfactory  prices. 


BELGIUM.  383 

AUTHORITIES  AND  SOURCES  OF  INFORMATION. 

I  have  been  a  personal  witness  to  many  of  the  things  I  have  de- 
scribed ;  but  I  have  received  material  aid  in  my  examinations  from  the 
following  gentlemen,  to  whom  I  tender  my  acknowledgments:  Profes- 
sor Leyder,  of  the  Eoyal  Agricultural  Institute  at  Gaubloux,  Belgium ; 
Louis  Tydgadt,  esq.,  secretary  of  the  Agricultural  Society  of  Flandre 
Orientale,  Ghent  5  Mr.  P.  F.  L.  Waldeck,  secretary  Holland"  Society, 
Loosdianen,  near  The  Hague;  Professor  Bonar,  agricultural  engineer; 
Selzaete,  director  of  abattoir,  Brussels ;  Mr.  Edward  Minne,  inspector 
of  abattoir,  Ghent;  report  of  jury  on  quantity  and  quality  of  milk, 
prepared  by  Professor  Chevron,  of  the  Eoyal  Agricultural  Institute  at 
Gaubloux. 

THOMAS  WILSON, 

Consul 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Ghent,  October  27, 1881. 


384  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


SPAIN. 


CATTLE  IN  ANDALUSIA 

REPORT  BY  CONSUL  OPPENHEIH,  OF  CADIZ. 

In  pursuance  of  instructions  given  in  Department  circular  of  July  18, 
1883, 1  transmit  herewith  certain  tables  bearing  upon  the  grazing  inter- 
est in  this  district.  Stock-breeding,  properly  so-called,  meaning  thereby 
the  improvement  of  cattle  on  a  large  scale  by  selection  and  crossing, 
may  be  said  not  to  exist  here.  Individual  experiments  of  crossing  for- 
eign cattle  with  the  native  breed  have  occasionally  been  made,  but  the 
results  are  said  not  to  have  been  encouraging.  Some  years  ago  English 
Shorthorn  cows  were  imported  into  the  district  of  Jerez  and  crossed 
with  the  native  bulls,  but  the  experiment  was  unsuccessful,  the  breed 
deteriorating  rapidly  and  tending  to  revert  to  the  original  native  type. 
In  the  district  of  Puerto  de  Sta.  Maria,  there  are  now  some  cross-breeds, 
produced  by  crossing  Swiss  and  native  cattle  (native  bull  and  Swiss 
cows);  the  milk  product  of  the  cross-breed  cow  is  much  superior  to  that 
of  the  native,  both  in  richness  and  in  quantity,  but  the  animals  lose 
their  hardiness,  do  not  stand  the  heat  well,  and  require  shelter  and  arti- 
ficial feeding  almost  the  whole  year  round.  These  experiments,  and 
probably  many  other  similar  ones  unknown  to  me,  have  created  an  im- 
pression that  the  native  stock  of  this  district  does  not  lend  itself  readily 
to  improvement  by  crossing.  The  interest  of  this  inquiry  to  our  dairy- 
men and  cattle-breeders  must  further  be  lessened  by  the  patent  fact 
that  the  Andalusian  cattle,  outside  of  a  good  appearance  and  endurance 
of  heat,  do  not  seem  to  have  any  prominent  points  of  excellence.  They 
are  not  good  milkers,  and  produce  beef  which,  at  its  best,  is  only  medi- 
ocre. On  the  other  hand  they  are  very  cheaply  kept,  requiring  hardly 
any  shelter  or  care  of  any  kind.  That  American  breeders  should  import 
Andalusian  stock  is  only  conceivable  in  the  somewhat  remote  contin- 
gency of  our  people  developing  a  taste  for  bull  fighting.  The  fierceness 
and  the  mettle  of  the  Andalusian  bull  are  indisputable,  and  these  traits 
are  sufficiently  developed  even  in  some  of  the  cows  to  make  them  some- 
what undesirable  as  inmates  of  a  dairy.  Whilst  the  above  considera- 
tions undoubtedly  detract  from  the  practical  value  of  this  inquiry  to 
our  stock-breeders,  yet  many  interesting  facts  and  data  bearing  upon 
the  meteorology,  the  topography,  the  flora,  ars  well  as  on  the  economical 
situation  of  this  district  may  be  included  within  its  frame- work.  Such 
of  these  data  as  are  contained  in  the  accompanying  tables  have  been 
gathered  in  every  case  from  the  best  available  sources,  and  as  far  as 
they  go  are  undoubtedly  trustworthy. 

EKNEST  L.  OPPENHEIM, 

Consul, 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Cadiz,  October  25, 1884. 


SPAIN. 
Topography  of  tlie  province  of  Cadiz, 


385 


Altitude 

Altitude 

of  high- 

of high- 

Locality. 

est  point 
in  meters 

Locality. 

est  point 
in  meters 

above  sea 

above  sea 

level. 

level. 

San  Fernando   (Bav  of  Cadiz)  

29  5 

Sierra  de  Gibraltar  

410  — 

Puerto  Heal  (Bay  of  Cadiz) 

9  5 

Medina                   . 

250— 

Puerto  do  Sta.  Maria  (Bay  of  Cadiz)  

8.5 

Chiclana  

360— 

141 

Olvera                    .                , 

1  124— 

50 

1  750 

Utrera              «    .        

43— 

NOTE. — The  annual  rainfall  at  the  observatory  of  San  Fernando  is  given  at  650.03mm  (about  26  inches) 
this  being  the  mean  of  ten  years'  observations.  During  the  last  two  years  the  temperature  of  the  soil 
has  been  taken  daily,  giving  mean  of  temperature  :  At  a  depth  of  0.63m — 17.6°  centigrade ;  at  a  depth 
of  I.a0m--18.80  centigrade. 

Mean  temperature,  17.2°  C.  Summer,  23.1°  C.  Winter,  12.0°  C.,  being  results  of 
ten  years'  observations  at  the  San  Fernando  Observatory,  and  believed  to  bo  approxi- 
mately correct  for  the  coast  districts  and  the  lands  where  altitude  does  not  exceed  50 
meters  above  sea-level.  In  the  central  districts,  and  up  to  an  altitude  of  about  250 
meters  above  sea-level,  the  mean  annual  temperature  is  15°  centigrade  ;  on  the  higher 
uplands,  from  250  to  1,000  meters  above  sea-level,  it  is  12°  centigrade. 

SOIL. — Alluvial:  There  is  some  alluvial  pasture  on  the  Gnadalete,  the  Guadal- 
quivir, and  other  minor  streams ;  this  represents,  however,  but  a  very  small  percent- 
age of  the  total  pasturage.  Loam :  There  is  but  little  of  this  hied  of  soil  in  the 
province;  the  district  of  Olvera  includes  some  largish  tracts  of  "clayey  loam"  de- 
voted to  pasturage.  Clay  and  chalk  :  These  soils  are  frequently  met  with  in  natural 
meadows,  especially  in  the  higher  pastures,  probably  representing  from  35  to  40  per 
cent,  of  total  grazing  area  in  this  province.  Sand)/.  $c. :  A  largo  portion  of  the  natT 
ural  pastures  of  this  province  has  sandy  or  gravelly  soil ;  40  to  45  per  cent,  is  a  fair 
estimate  of  the  percentage  having  such  soil. 

Pasturage  of  Western  Andalusia — species  most  abundant  in  natural  pasture. 
ORDER  LEGUMIXJB. 

Trifolium  pratensis:  wild  clover,  red  and  white. 

Lotus  corniculatus. 

Hedysarium  coronarium  :  French  honey-sucklo. 

Hedysarium  honobrichus. 

Lathyrus  sihestris:  wild  vetch. 

Mtdicago  sativa:  lucerne. 

Mcdicago  lupulina. 

ORDER  GRAMIXE^E. 

Avcna  fatua :  wild  oats. 

Poa  trivialis :  meadow  grass,  chiefly  the  rough-stalked  variety. 

Lolium  multiflorum:  Italian  rye-grass. 

Festucas :  fescue  grasses,  many  varieties. 

Bromus :  brome-grass. 

Triticum  repens :  couch-grass. 

Phalaris  canariensis :  canary-grass. 

Carlina  acaulis :  carline  thistle. 


CULTIVATED  GRASSES. 

Artificial  pasture  is  very  uncommon  in  this  district,  though  here  and  there  experi- 
ments have  been  made  in'that  line  ;  such  pasture  here  seems  to  require  very  damp 
situations.  In  such  spots  clover  (from  American  seed),  with  giant  Italian  rye-grass 
(from  English  seed),  have  given  very  good  results. 

A  natural  meadow,  situate  on  undulating  ground,  near  the  river  Guadalete,  is  es- 
timated by  its  owner  (a  life-long  agronomist)  to  have  the  following  composition: 
Wild  clover,  ( Trifolium  pralensis)  about  10  per  cent.;  couch-grass  (Triticum  repcvs) 
about  60  per  cent.;  wild  canary-grass  (Phalaris  canaricnsis)  about  5  per  cent.;  Italian 

H.  Ex.  51 25 


386 


CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 


rye-grass-  (Lolium  temulentum)  about  10  per  cent:  leaving  about  15  per  cent,  for  mis- 
cellaneous grasses  a'nd  weeds,  and  this  is  believed  to  be  a  fair  type  of  the  natural 
pasture  of  the  coast  districts  and  less  elevated  lands.  The  upper  pastures  (from  250 
meters  above  sea-level  upwards)  covering,  probably,  60  per  cent,  of  the  total  in  the 
province,  have  a  smaller  proportion  of  Leguminse  than  the  low-lying  tracts ;  wild 
clover  is  absent,  and  lucerne  (Medicago  saliva}  takes  its  place;  the  French  honey- 
suckle is  very  abundant,  especially  on  chalky  hill-sides  and  table-lands.  Amongst 
the  Graminese,  the  fescue  grasses,  wild  oats,  brome  and  the  meadow  grasses  (Poa) 
thrive  most  luxuriantly  in  the  higher  pastures,  and  those  species  undoubtedly  furnish 
a  large  proportion  of  the  upland  herbage. 

Statement  showing  the  area  of  pasture  lands  in  the  province  of  Cadiz. 
[Total  area  of  province  7.275  kilometers.] 


Locality  (judicial  districts). 

Natural 
pasture, 
treeless. 

Natural 
pasture,  tim- 
bered. 

Totals. 

Altitude 
of    highest 
point   in 
each  district 
above  sea- 
level. 

Hectares. 
30  174 

Hectares. 
11  405 

Hectares. 
41  579 

Meters. 
*410 

8  947 

6  862 

15  809 

141 

'   62 

62 

to 

9  139 

9  058 

18  197 

11  750 

Chiclana         

24  245 

5  982 

30  227 

*360 

13  419 

40  990 

54  409 

50 

21  447 

35  359 

56  806 

250 

Olvera                    

3  334 

10  525 

13  859 

§1  124 

Puerto  Sta.  Maria  

7  758 

1  919 

9  677 

'     8  5 

San  Fernando  ................... 

257 

257 

29.5 

6  315 

558 

6  873 

tio 

13  818 

34,  927 

48,  745 

t400 

138  915 

157  585 

296,  500 

*  Sierra  de  Gibraltar,    t  Altitude  estimated,  not  measured. 
NOTE.— The  hectare  =  2.47114  acres. 


|  Cerro  del  Pinar.    §  Pico  del  Algibe. 


Statistics  of  cattle  of  Western  Andalusia. 


Size  at  maturity. 


Cow. 

Bull. 

Ox. 

Ft.  In. 
4    4 

Ft.  In. 
4  10 

Ftln. 
4    7J 

Girth  

6    7 

7    4 

6  10 

Length  of  head  

1    8 

2    3 

2    2 

Breadth  of  head  

10 

1    4 

1    2J 

Length  of  horns  

1    6J 

2    C 

2    3 

Name  of  breed :  Andalusian. 

Yield  of  milk :  Milk  is  rarely  collected ;  quantity  of  dairy  yield  of  a  fair  cow  is  esti 
mated  at  7  kilograms  per  day' 

Milk  to  pounds  of  Gutter  :  Unknown ;  butter-making  as  a  regular  industry  does  not 
exist. 

Milk  to  pounds  of  cheese  :  Unknown ;  very  little  cheese  is  made. 

LIVE  WEIGHT. — Cow:  255  kilograms ;  lull :  380  kilograms ;  ox:  335  kilograms. 

Afje  at  maturity :  Four  and  a  half  to  five  years. 

WEIGHT  OP  MEAT  AT  MATURITY.— Ox :  225  kilograms;  lull:  260  kilograms;  cow: 
170  kilograms. 

Color :  Pure  black  and  pure  red  cattle  are  the  most  abundant ;  next  common  are 
spotted  black  and  white,  then  spotted  red  and  white. 

Description :  The  Andalusian  cattle  are  fairly  proportioned  animals,  neither  high 
nor  low  on  the  leg;  rather  deep-chested  and  clear-limbed.    The  contour  of  the  back 


SPAIN. 


387 


is  level,  "what  is  called  in  English  grazier  parliance  '  'square-cut."  The  horns  as  a 
rule  spread  at  right  angles  from  the  head,  ends  being  curved  slightly  upwards.  The 
head  is  of  normal  shape,  tapering,  however,  a  good  deal  towards  the  muzzle. 

How  long  ~bred  pure :  From  time  immemorial  very  few  foreign  animals  have  ever  been 
imported  for  cross-breeding  purposes,  and  those  few  only  very  recently,  so  that  the 
practical  results  of  cross-breeding  are  not  definitely  established. 

Labor :  Oxen  work  up  to  about  nine  years  of  age,  thus  giving  about  four  years'  plow- 
ing or  hauling;  the  usefulness  of  a  good  steer  at  either  work  is  considered  equal  to 
that  of  a  mule,  whilst  cost  of  feeding  the  steer  is  only  estimated  at  about  half. 

Milk :  But  rarely  collected. 

Cheese :  Hardly  any  made. 

Methods  of  housing :  Are  of  the  most  primitive  character ;  as  dairying  is  not  prac- 
ticed, there  are  but  very  few  cow  stables.  On  most  farms  rough,  open  sheds  are  pro- 
vided, under  which  animals  seek  shelter  during  inclement  weather. 

Feeding :  It  is  the  general  custom  to  turn  all  animals  but  working  oxen  loose  on 
the  natural  pasture ;  working  oxen  are  fed  during  the  three  or  four  winter  mouths  on 
lleros  (tares)  and  chopped  straw,  the  rest  of  the  year  on  grass  only. 

Breeding :  Very  little  attention  is  paid  to  breeding,  unless  in  the  case  of  breeding 
bulls  for  the  "Plaza."  The  desirable- points  in  these  animals  being  fierceness  and 
mettle,  only  cows  exhibiting  these  traits  are  used  as  dams ;  the  process  of  selection 
is  by  having  the  animals  lightly  goaded  by  a  man  on  horseback  (el  tentador)  and 
those  that  turn  upon  the  horse  and  exhibit  most  bravery  are  reserved  for  breeding. 

Handling  products :  The  production  of  cow's  milk,  butter,  and  cheese  is  very  small ; 
the  local  consumption  of  the  two  latter  articles  is  supplied  by  other  districts,  and 
goat's  milk  is  in  general  use.  Hence  it  may  be  said  that  the  products  of  the  grazing 
industry  in  this  province  are  beef  and  labor. 

Statement  showing  the  number  of  domestic  animals  in  the  province  of  Cadiz  (year  1880). 


Locality.   (Judicial  districts.) 

Horses. 

Mules. 

Asses. 

Neat 
cattle. 

Sheep. 

Goats. 

Hogs. 

Al^eciras       •--  

1  379 

85 

505 

8,033 

6,953 

8,677 

5  397 

3,658 

867 

1,679 

6,557 

29,  404 

6,280 

2  625 

Cadiz                   

596 

110 

304 

20 

2S'0 

153 

251 

2  068 

4  817 

11  704 

1  369 

Chiclana                 

1  085 

366 

646 

7,017 

6,529 

4,719 

3  074 

5,552 

307 

1,205 

17,  079 

11,  876 

4,881 

*741 

1  753 

442 

1,133 

9  227 

14,  534 

14,  071 

3  061 

Olvera          -.  

912 

654 

1,265 

3,210 

5,527 

7,716 

3,909 

Puerto  Sta  Maria 

496 

144 

1,146 

1,815 

768 

2,018 

400 

58 

45 

50 

100 

58 

420 

78 

207 

785 

1,695 

298 

150 

1,021 

118 

387 

4,182 

5,391 

9,184 

1,340 

Total 

17  150 

3,369 

8,778 

60,  053 

87,494 

69,  553 

22,  124 

*The  number  of  hogs  in  the  district  of  Jerez  is  known  to  exceed  considerably  the  figure  given  here 


CATTLE  IN  CATALONIA. 

Catalonia  is  not  a  stock-raising  province,  with  the  exception  of  mules 
in  the  northwestern  portion^  near  the  Pyrenees.  The  province  of  Cat- 
alonia is  almost  entirely  an  agricultural  and  not  a  stock-raising  one. 
Only  one-fourth  of  all  cattle  for  the  market  is  raised  in  the  province, 
while  three-fourths  are  imported  as  follows : 

Beef.— During  the  winter  from  the  Basque  provinces  and  Gahcia; 
during  the  summer  from  Argelia,  Africa. 

Milcli  cows.— Entirely  from  Switzerland  at  high  prices. 

Sheep.— From  the  De  la  Mancha,  Spain,  and  Murcia. 

Pork. — (The  sale  of  which  is  prohibited  during  the  six  months  of  sum- 
mer) from  Estremadura  and  Fiance. 


388  CATTLE  AND  DAIRY  FARMING. 

All  live  stock  for  consumption  is  of  very  inferior  class,  as  Cataloniaus 
feel  no  interest  in  stock  breeding,  but  are  entirely  absorbed  in  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  grape,  almonds,  nuts,  and  vegetables,  besides  general 
manufacturing,  especially  of  cotton  and  woolen  fabrics. 
Eespectfully, 

FItED'K  n.  SCHEUOU, 

UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE,  Consul. 

Barcelona,  December  12,  1883. 


CATTLE  IN  GALICIA. 
i 

REPORT  B?  CONSUL  OARRICARTE,  OF  CORUNNA. 

I  have  the  honor  to  forward  the  following  statement  respecting  the 
cattle  of  this  province : 

The  name  of  the  cattle  bred  is  Galician;  annual  average  pounds  of 
milk  per  head,  2,555 ;  live  weight  per  cow,  8  hundred-weight ;  live 
weight  per  ox,  14  hundred-weight ;  age  at  maturity,  eight  years  ;  weight 
of  meat  at  maturity,  7  hundred-weight ;  color,  yellow;  origin  of  breed, 
Spain. 

Topography. — The  altitude  of  the  grazing  country  vary  between  10 
feet  and  2GO  feet.  The  mean  temperature  as  recorded  at  the  capital, 
Corunna,is  56°  Fahrenheit.  The  soil  is  of  the  most  varied  description 
and  embraces  every  quality. 

The  substratum  is  most  generally  porous ;  limestone  found  in  the  east 
and  centre  of  the  province,  and  granite  around  the  western  coasts. 

Cultivation  by  rotation  of  crops  is  not  practiced.  Clover  and  rye- 
grass  are  but  little  sown.  On  the  wheat  stubble  (in  July)  oats  or  barley 
and  turnips  are  sown  to  serve  as  green  crops  for  winter. 

Methods  of  housing. — Common  dark  stables;  manure  usually  cleared 
out  twice  or  thrice  a  year. 

Feeding.— Almost  all  manger  feeding  as  respects  oxen,  and  pasture 
for  cows;  much  wet  meadow  land. 

Breeding. — Selections  of  sires  little  attended  to  and  consequent  de- 
generation as  shown  in  lightness  of  hind  quarters  of  the  beasts. 

Handling  products. — Hand  labor  being  cheap  but  little  machinery  is 
used,  and  the  methods  are  primitive  in  the  extreme. 

Stock. — The  stock  of  cattle  is  in  excess  of  homo  demands.  The  sur- 
plus is  exported  to  England  and  may  be  calculated  to  reach  40,000 
oxen  annually;  the  medium  price  per  liead  being  $75. 

HCTW  TO  EXPORT  GALICIAN  CATTLE   TO  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  best  method  for  transporting  cattle  to  the  United  States  is  via 
Liverpool  or  Plymouth,  England;  and  the  freight  paid  to  either  of 
these  ports  is  $8  or  $10  per  head.  The  class  of  beasts  for  exportation 
to  the  United  States  should  be  young  oxen  from  sixteen  to  eighteen 
months  old,  the  price  of  which  varies  from  $30  to  $50  per  beast. 

The  inclosed  photographs  are  taken  from  animals  belonging  to  a 
cargo  for  England,  the  price  and  age  of  each  being  noted. 

J.  DE  CAEHICAKTE, 

Consul, 
UNITED  STATES  CONSULATE, 

Corunna,  March  31,  1884. 


I 


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